The Pride of Vallekas

This picture below encapsulates Spanish football, and all its dichotomies, perfectly. The player on the left played for an Andalusian, is from Columbia, and cost 7 million euros. The one on the right played for a Basque club, is from the Basque Country, and cost nothing. Today's story, naturally, is about the story on the right. Txema Añibarro, a 6'2" rugged defensive midfielder, is very much the definition of the stereotypical Basque player....This is the story of a man who rose up the league system, from the fifth tier to the first, via only Basque clubs. He started out with the juvenil sides of Padura (1997-98) and Indartsu (1998-99), before making his first team debut with fifth tier (Preferente) side Galdakao. He would go on to play in the fifth tier for three seasons, one with Galdakao and two with Arratia (2000-02), before being signed by Tercera side Lemona in 2002, at the age of 23. After one season each with Lemona, Aurrerá Ondarroa and Gernika, he...

Ahead of Rayo B's game against Internacional de Madrid CF, this piece is dedicated to the team that formed just 15 years ago, and has played at four stadiums. International de Madrid was founded in 2002 by a group of businessmen. In its first season, the club joined the Tercera Regional, eighth tier, and played their home games at Orcasitas, at the ground of the Polideportivo de la Asociación de Vecinos de Orcasitas . Internacional finished its first season with promotion, by winning all the games played, scoring 187 goals and conceding only 25. They achieved a second consecutive promotion in its second season, again leading their group, with 128 goals for and only 17 against. They played the next two seasons at La Dehesa de la Villa . Internacional de Madrid continued the following seasons playing in Regional Preferente - the fifth tier. In 2006, the club moved again, this time to Moraleja de Enmedio . In 2010 they achieved - for the first time - the promotion to Tercera Div...