The player from Burriana has been with the club all his life and is one of the captains of the U14s team
A lifetime spent playing for Villarreal and proudly wearing the captain’s armband. Álvaro Alcaide is one of the young talents who started playing in the Yellows Academy at a very young age. The player from Burriana is a quality midfielder, exquisite in driving forwards and precise in his final pass. A player with 100% Villarreal CF DNA.
Those who have seen him play compare him to other promising youngsters from the youth system who are coming on strong like the Villarreal B player Carlo Adriano and the Villarreal C player from Castellón, Rodri Alonso, two of his references: “They are players I look up to a lot. I’m a player who likes to drive forward between the lines and provide assists, and they are very good at that. The coaches also show me a lot of videos of their movements and the way they play to improve my game.”
This season, Álvaro Alcaide is playing for the U14s, a team with a great record. The Yellows outfit have the same amount of wins as matches played and dreams of achieving a very difficult task: “We have won all 22 matches so far this season and we have the ambition to win all the matches we play this season. It will be tough, but we want to try.”
It won’t be easy in a very competitive league in which they will have to face the best regional teams in the second half of the season in order to become champions. A major challenge for one of the best generations of the yellow’s academy football. “It’s a group with a lot of quality players. We are enjoying playing matches and we are working very hard in training because there is a lot of competition, which helps us to improve,” explains Álvaro Alcaide.
His best moment as a Yellow is also linked to this brilliant generation of players, with whom he recently lifted the LaLiga Promises champions title: “It was a unique and unforgettable experience. I was very happy to win the tournament and also to have been able to help the team with my performances.”
Being a local player and wearing yellow is always very special. Álvaro Alcaide is proud of it and praises the level of academy football in the region of Castellón: “I’ve been playing for Villarreal for many years. Being from the area and playing for this club is very nice and a source of pride for me. In the team there are other teammates like Dani Sasha or Mauro Roca, who are also from the region. There is a lot of quality in this area.”
Football in his genes
Álvaro Alcaide has innate qualities for playing football. It is no coincidence. His father, Pepe Alcaide, was a professional footballer and played in the second division with SD Ponferradina. Since 2013, he began his career as a coach in Villarreal CF’s academy football. Currently, he is part of the Villarreal B coaching staff, led by Miguel Álvarez.
For Álvaro, the figure of his father is a mirror in which to look at himself in his dream of one day becoming a professional footballer. “He is admirable. My father has been a footballer, he even played in the second division. I would like to follow in his footsteps and why not… go one step further and reach the first division. I am aware that it is very difficult, but I want to fight for it.”
Having a father who is an ex-footballer and a coach of young players is an added bonus for this promising young player from Burriana, who admits that he does get some advice: “I don’t usually talk much about football with my father. Sometimes we talk about things, but as fans. Regarding my games, he gives me some advice from time to time, I listen to it and I try to apply it.”
