A total of 25 players will receive a ceramic submarine this Thursday for their decade as Yellows, and nearly 500 have been recognised since 2009
Villarreal CF are a club that puts a lot of care and dedication into working with their youth academy. For almost three decades, the Yellows have been capturing and channelling talent from the province of Castellón and other parts of Spain.
Since the arrival of Fernando Roig and the consequent creation of an elite youth academy, backed by a first-class infrastructure, many young talents have joined the Submarine over the past decades, with the dream of making their debut at the Estadio de la Cerámica.
Some have made it and many others have enjoyed a long journey defending the Submarine’s colours at various levels of youth football. To recognise the dedication of the Yellows who have completed a decade as Villarreal players, the club decided to undertake a nice tribute to give them visibility and thank them for their commitment and that of their families.
This small recognition, which has now become a real tradition, has been held continuously since the 2008/2009 season. Since then, in addition to the 25 players who will be honoured this Thursday, a total of 480 footballers have received the symbolic ceramic submarine in recognition of their long careers linked to the club.
From academy prospects to legends
Marcos Senna, Bruno Soriano, Javi Venta, Pau Torres, Manu Trigueros, Jaume Costa, Moi Gómez, Álex Baena, Gerard Moreno, Alfonso Pedraza and Pau Navarro are some of the most talented players who have celebrated more than ten years with the Yellow Submarine.
But as well as these stars, hundreds of young players have fought for the Villarreal CF badge with pride, representing the club’s values, in distinct youth age groups, without having reached elite football.
Pioneers in women’s and girls’ football
More than thirty of them are women or girls who, thanks to Villarreal CF, got their start in football long before the expansion of women’s football in recent years. Lucía Gómez, Aixa Salvador and Bea Prades are some of them. Talented players who broke the stereotypes by training in the club’s youth ranks and then taking the women’s team to the elite.
Just like Patri Traver, who was one of the first girls to play for the Submarine. A pioneer in our province in women’s football, who, after training at the club, went on to play in the first division away from home and then, as coordinator, took Villarreal to the elite: “For me, Villarreal has been everything. It gave me a lot as a player, but I was also formed here as a person,” she emphasises with enthusiasm after having been linked to the club for many years on the pitch, on the bench and in the offices.
From the pitch to the sidelines
Of that first generation of Yellows, some are still linked to the club of their lives, but no longer as footballers, but as coaches, instilling in the new generations what it means to play for Villarreal CF. Edgar Chumillas, Álex Salvador and Álex Valle hung up their boots to take up coaching.
“Villarreal is the club on which I have built my life. Here I have learnt and been formed as a person and a professional,” confesses Valle, who after a long career as a youth player is now the one who guides the young talents of Villarreal C as a member of the coaching team.
What began as a small tribute has become an important tradition to which the club attaches great value. As Pablo Cañada, Villarreal CF’s 11-a-side football coordinator, explains: “We are a club based on youth football and these details reinforce that sense of belonging. Being here for so many years is a privilege because the club offers the best training both on a sporting and personal level, as well as the values promoted by the club,” explains Cañada, who began his career with the Submarine in the 2005/06 season, almost two decades ago, and who considers himself an academy graduate from the club.
