Looking back at Valencia at the turn of the century, the names familiar to fans are Aimar, Ayala, Canizares, Vicente, Baraja, Albelda, etc., all heroes of their youth. However, Miguel Ángel Ferrer Martínez, who also played for Valencia for 5 years, cannot be ignored. Although his name is a bit lengthy, calling him "Mista" makes people feel like they are reunited after a long absence. Mista has won four prestigious trophies for Valencia. Missa explains the nickname: "It was passed down from my father's generation. However, Mista's story is not limited to his name. As a youth elite for Real Madrid, he excelled in both the B and C teams, even scoring 18 goals in 27 games in a single season. However, the radiant Real Madrid did not easily put him in the first team, which was almost a sign for him to give up. After all, Real Madrid wouldn't have loaned Mista to Tenerife if it weren't for his desperate need for game time. 'When I was 20 years old, I needed game time and I didn't want to sit on the bench, so I chose Tenerife even though they were in the second division.
Despite being labeled a "traitor", Mista does not regret his choice. After all, it takes a lot of courage to leave Real Madrid. "I learned a lot at Real Madrid and at Tenerife I learned how to endure hardships, how to deal with setbacks, and this experience changed my character," he said. ”。Although he has only scored 18 goals in 71 games, which is not a high efficiency, the opportunity to present himself in his early 20s was a bonus. What's more, in Tenerife, Mista met Benitez, and the two worked together to bring the team to the stage of the first division. Originally, the two who went hand in hand slowly became comrades-in-arms because of Valencia's call. It is worth mentioning that before Mista joined Valencia, he had a legal dispute with Real Madrid. During the loan period, Mista's contract with Real Madrid stipulated that if he wanted to terminate his contract early, he would have to pay 7500 million pesetas in liquidated damages. However, Tenerife did not have enough funds to cover this cost. So, they teamed up with Mista and took Real Madrid to court, demanding a reduction in the cost of forced termination.
Surprisingly, they won the case. Tenerife is only 2The €40,000 was granted the right to join Mista, and then in the summer of 2001, he was transferred to Valencia for €3.5 million. Mista has been in the spotlight lately, but he doesn't seem to mind the uproar caused by the lawsuit. He is convinced that the reason for his success with Valencia lies in his loyalty to his mentor Rafael Benitez: "As long as Benitez gives me a chance, I will reward him with goals. This passionate statement may have been relatable at first, but in fact, back in 2004, when Benitez was about to sell him to Sevilla, Mista made a similar statement expressing the same determination: "I decided to stay and play for Benitez, despite the fact that Sevilla gave me more financial reward. However, compared to his first two seasons at Benitez, Mista has scored just 12 goals in 53 games, giving the impression that he is "familiar with the La Liga title". And when the transfer rumors came out in 2004, he scored 19 goals in 33 La Liga games, becoming the first local scorer in La Liga.
Even more surprisingly, Mista was named Man of the Match in the Europa League final in 2003-04. "Fortunately, this season, Mista has come to the fore, otherwise Valencia would never have achieved the 'double'. 'Mista's help helped Valencia win the double and put them in the spotlight. At the time, both Liverpool and Barcelona were interested in signing him, but he decided to move forward with Valencia. It is worth mentioning that at that time, Benitez had already received an offer from Liverpool. In fact, after a season of success, Mista has long been identified as having gone downhill. Despite his ability to head the ball, dribbling and dribbling are not his strong suits. And in the Real Madrid team represented by Raul, Mista has no competitive advantage. The Spaniard at the time was blunt: "Mista's goal actually relied on the Valencia midfielder's superior ability to assist, and without the support of Vicente and Aimar, it would have been difficult for him to find so many chances in the box.
It was no accident that he missed Euro 2004, and perhaps the only consolation Mista received was the sweet words of then-Spanish national team coach Sess: "Mista, I haven't forgotten you." However, he only made two appearances for his country and, sadly, suffered a mental blow that left him unpopular in Valencia, with new boss Flores showing no interest in him. In the summer of 2006, Mista joined Atletico Madrid for 4 million euros. Although he played alongside stars such as Fernando Torres, Forlan and Sergio Aguero, he scored just three goals in 35 games. Mista's performances at Atletico Madrid were overshadowed, with injuries distancing him from the team and eventually having to be terminated early. Although he later joined De Coruni for free, he did not regain his former form. In La Liga, he scored just one goal in two consecutive seasons, making him an ordinary man at the age of 30. Despite this, his goal against his former club Real Madrid was one of the few bright spots of his career. Today, Mista's nostalgia is rarely mentioned.
He was labelled a flash in the pan, after all, only one season in his career had more than double figures. But you know, if it weren't for Benitez's vision and insight, maybe Mista's career wouldn't be so bleak.