Done Deal: Etienne Capoue signs for Villarreal

A seasoned French midfielder of English football, Etienne Capoue has landed a transfer move to sign for La Liga side Villarreal. A veteran of the game and an all-around quality player, the Frenchman is going to provide quality, consistency and a bit of steel to a Villarreal side led by former Arsenal manager Unai Emery.

Manager Unai Emery has Villarreal running in hot form, with the team in the third position of La Liga in Spain, just below Atletico de Madrid and Real Madrid. The board clearly doesn’t want to rest on their laurels and they have gotten Emery a new man for his army, French midfielder Etienne Capoue. The 32 year old Frenchman Capoue is a veteran of the English Premier League, having played many years there with the likes of Tottenham Hotspurs and Watford. He especially shined with the Hornets, becoming one of their star performers for many years and usually contributing in different aspects of the game.

This is what Villarreal are getting with him: an all-around midfielder that can provide quality and skill in many different stages of the game. Whether it’s defending, attacking, distributing or off-the-ball movement, Capoue has proven to be a very valuable asset for the teams he has played in. Another important aspect of this signing is leadership. Villarreal are getting a 32 year old midfielder that can experience and knowledge of the game to a fairly young squad, especially one that wants to achieve Champions League football and compete against the likes of Atletico, Real Madrid or Barcelona.

So it makes sense why this transfer happened: Unai Emery is getting a commander for his midfielder for an undisclosed fee and Capoue is getting the chance to shine on a different league, perhaps in a higher profile than ever before in his career and at a somewhat late age as well, at least in football terms.