10 things you need to know about Villa target Anders Guardado

By Steve Anglesey in Football Spy

Published 17:31 09/03/10

• 

1) Speedy and an electric dribbler, Mexican left-winger Anders Guardado is becoming one of the hottest properties in European football. Spain's Deportivo La Coruna beat Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and PSV Eindhoven to his signature in 2007 and he's recently attracted the attention of Spurs and Fiorentina before being today.

Villa keeping tabs on Spanish midfield star  

2) Guardado is not scared to have a pop from distance. Here he is blasting one in from 25 yards for first club Atlas back home in Mexico.

3) And here's a 20-yarder for his national team against Uruguay...

4) Guardado rose to prominence with Atlas only because of a bizarre rule change in Mexico. The league decreed that all teams had to field at least one player under the age of 21 in half their league games - and the kid from Guadalajara was promoted from the reserves. Less than four months after his senior debut, he was called by Mexico and went on to play in the 2006 World Cup finals. He's now won 47 caps, scoring seven goals.

5) Guardado scored Mexico's goal in the 2007 Gold Cup final defeat to arch-rivals USA, then was involved in a clsh of heads with Jonathan Spector which saw the West Ham defender substituted after suffering a concussion. According to a Mexican fan who saw the collision on YouTube, "Spector esta una mejor liga idiota" - which you can probably translate yourselves.

6) It's thought that a major stumbling block to any Premier League move for Guardado will be his stated desire to live and play in a Spanish-speaking country. He said recently: "I am at Deportivo and don't want people to get me wrong, thinking I want to go away. These rumours should be taken with caution, there is still so much time to the end of the season and then there will be the World Cup and other important things for me."

7) Guardado's exceptional poise and balance can be witnessed in this cracker for Depor against Espanyol.

8) Guardado scored one and made one in a comeback victory against Tenerife at the weekend - despite complaining of dizziness during the match. Team-mate Rodolfo Bodipo signalled to coach Miguel Angel Lotina that Guardado was unwell but the boss misunderstood and subbed Bodipo by mistake. Here's the goal:

9) Guardado is such a big star in Spain that he's starred in his own version of the adidas 'Impossible Is Nothing' ad also featuring Lionel Messi and David Beckham. Here it is...

10) Guardado has been mentioned as a possible answer to Manchester United's search for a long-term Cristiano Ronaldo replacement. However it's thought the 23-year-old's slight stature - he's only 5-foot-6 and weighs just 9-stone-6 - has put off Sir Alex Ferguson. But when the kid can bang them in like this, maybe Fergie should have another look...

Fancy winning £3,000 for FREE this month? Play Mirror Football Streak for your chance to win cash prizes! Start predicting now!