The impact of Rafa Llorente | OneFootball

He arrived in the winter market as a transfer, one of the big moves in the Primera Federación. His name had already come up several times last summer, with Ángel García (Cazurreando on Twitter) being the first journalist to mention him, and we were able to confirm it in this medium. And he is already making a difference.

Rafa Llorente has accumulated just over 500 minutes in his new phase as a player for Atlético Madrileño. In the 6 matches he has played, he has always been a starter. Arriving and hitting the ground running, as they say. A favorite of Fernando Torres, of course, for his speed, verticality, and versatility as he can play as a right winger, left winger, attacking midfielder, and occasionally as a center forward.

On this last point, I pause a bit more, especially knowing the situation of the forwards in the team. The one who was the starter, Omar Janneh, stopped being so for reasons we still don't know (it doesn't mean there aren't any, and possibly justified, but it's an X-file... for now) and was sold for 2 million to the Swiss Lausanne Sport. Miguel Cubo has made the leap from Juvenil B to Primera Federación, with all that entails, and is being one of the great news in La Academia with his 4 goals in bronze football and his positive performances in the Youth League. Dario Sits plays sometimes, but his performance is below expectations, having as a reference his last year at Helmond Sport.

Given that situation, an important vacancy opened up. Because Cubo brings positive things to the game whenever he has minutes, but he still needs more minutes to fully develop in a category that waits for no one. And let's be honest: we can't burden the Segovian with such a big responsibility as being one of the offensive pillars of the reserve team. The coach didn't hesitate for a moment to introduce Llorente in that position (curiously, Cubo's first surname is Llorente, what a coincidence) and, little by little, he looks sharper.

Rafa started first on the right side against Atlético Sanluqueño (where he showed his quality), Gimnàstic de Tarragona, and Sevilla Atlético. Against Hércules he was the main forward, returned to the right wing in Tarazona, and against Cartagena he went back to the '9' position. In Aragonese lands, he completed his first great match, with a header goal to equalize and a masterful assist after an individual play to turn the score around. Against the black-and-whites, he played a good match that he sealed with a penalty conversion, deceiving Lucho García.

We still don't know the figures of his transfer, but they are below the 500,000 euros of his release clause as a potter. Fast, vertical, wanting to be the protagonist with the ball, and enjoying himself with details like the occasional backheel in the opponent's third or controls of a star. Above all, we highlight one quality: humility. The one he demonstrated in post-match statements in Tarazona, after his debut in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, and every time he dons the rogue stripes.

In a market policy with which I don't fully agree, with its positive aspects and others 'improvable', the investment in Rafa Llorente is gaining ground to be considered justified. Red and white until 2028. There's plenty of Rafa for a while.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.