Étienne Capoue: A Villarreal legend in the making
By Ethan Williams
“Listen I am telling you the truth I have no words. I can’t describe the feeling I have. I am working so hard to get finally a trophy in my career and we did it and with such a nice team. We are so happy for the club as well as we didn’t win anything and now we can come home with such a nice title.”
On 26th May 2021 Villarreal celebrated their biggest win in the club’s history by defeating Manchester United on penalties to become the 2021 UEFA Europa League Champions. The emotional words above were from the Man of the Match on that heroic night in Gdansk — one Étienne Capoue. Both Capoue and the club were celebrating their first trophy in football after the famous victory, with Capoue, coincidently six months to the day prior was playing his trade in a depleted Watford side in the second division of English football — maybe the Villarreal and Capoue connection was always meant to be.
“MVP! MVP! MVP!’” This was the chant bellowed out by thousands of joyous Groguets during their open-top tour bus parade following the UEFA Europa League victory. All orchestrated and aimed at the dominant central midfielder. The larger-than-life character was colossal in not only the final but throughout his current tenure with the club — providing match-winning performances both last season and this season. Following his signing in January 2021, out of a possible 34 games, Capoue appeared 27 times during the second half of the 2020/21 season, with the team only losing seven times. He continued to be a mainstay in the team in the 2021/22 season, and has become a key figure for the Yellow Submarine.
Before establishing himself as a firm fan favourite at Villarreal, Capoue’s story took many twists and turns along the way. Born in the commune of Niort in Western France in 1988, Capoue began his career by playing for his hometown club Chamois Niortais. In 2005, Capoue received his big break by joining Ligue 1 outfit Toulouse — where he made 174 senior appearances.
As a youth player he was touted as a star for the future due to his calm persona, physical presence and versatility: he could provide cover at centre-back, as well as having the ability to play as a defensive, box-to-box and creative midfielder. Nowadays, he is a formidable defensive midfielder who oozes calmness in and out of possession and adds much needed physicality in the middle of the park. His other key qualities include his passing range and vision as well as reading the game and intercepting the ball — making the game look as simple as possible even in the most difficult of games.
December 2007 was an important period for Capoue as he made both his professional debut for Toulouse and achieved his first senior career start too. From then on, his stock continued to rise especially after he was named Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year the following season. His efforts did not go unnoticed with Capoue making his international debut for France on 15th August 2012 against Uruguay. The following year, after 174 appearances, he left Toulouse to join Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League.
After two years at the North London club, he made the switch in the summer of 2015 to newly-promoted Watford. He earned several plaudits for his time in the Premier League, forming a formidable partnership with fellow central midfielder Abdoulaye Doucouré. In his second season at the club the ex-Hornet illustrated he clearly has a sting in his tail as he bagged four times in the first six games of the season — including a famous goal in their win against Manchester United. Under the tutelage of Unai Emery, Capoue has continued this goal scoring threat during his time at Villarreal too — contributing with crucial goals in important games as well as stepping up his performances on the biggest of stages. Capoue has taken to the Champions League this season like a submarine to water with him scoring his first UEFA Champions League goal at the age of 33 against Young Boys.
On signing Capoue from Watford, President Fernando Roig Negueroles said “He is a player with a lot of experience in leagues such as England and France. He is a footballer who fits our style of play well. He will bring us a lot both in the short and long term.” Capoue has played a massive role in short-term success, and is on the way to helping the club in the long term too.
