The 2022/23 LaLiga season has been another wild one, particularly the relegation battle. Although Barcelona had the title won weeks before the end of the season – arguably clinching it with a head-to-head win in the second Clásico of the league campaign – the Spanish top flight has remained compelling near the top of the table without a title race due to the unpredictability of the European places.
Along the way, many players have had the opportunities to rise to the occasion to be the heroes for the clubs, even beyond title favorites Barcelona. Tons of young footballers elevated their teams to the European football conversation with strong breakout campaigns.
Let’s take a look at the 11 biggest breakout stars of the 2022/23 LaLiga season.
Girona CM Aleix García
Nobody had a more prominent breakout this season in the Spanish top flight than Girona anchor Aleix García. The 25-year-old midfielder must already be recognized as world-class. He has led Girona by example, to the point where the newly-promoted side actually have an outside shot at qualifying for European football in the 2023/24 season.
So much of that is thanks to García, whose passing quality and overall technical class rank him among the best midfielders in LaLiga.
Furthermore, García has been a strong presence defensively in midfield, averaging 2.4 combined tackles and interceptions per game for Girona.
Antoine Griezmann is quite clearly LaLiga’s player of the season, but García is the other player who can be raised in the conversation as the only legitimate argument to the Atlético Madrid forward’s claim.
Mallorca AM Lee Kang-In
While Lee Kang-In had shown his promise for Mallorca in previous seasons, the South Korean playmaker has truly shone in the 2022/23 LaLiga season, lifting his club to the point where their status in the top flight has actually never been in doubt despite the logjam of teams in the relegation battle.
Lee has added a killer instinct to his game in the final third, finding the back of the net six times with an additional four assists. Some of Lee’s dribbles have been of the highest order, enabling him to escape tight pressure in the midfield before jetting up the pitch and creating a wonderful chance from nothing.
The exciting 22-year-old has produced his best football to close the season, giving Mallorca even more optimism for what he can do in the 2023/24 campaign. As of right now, Lee has to be considered one of the best players in LaLiga.
Barcelona LB Alejandro Baldé
Barcelona still have to figure out the ideal right back for the team over the long term, but while there was concern about the left side of the defense coming into the season, Alejandro Baldé proved to be the answer essentially from Day 1.
Baldé has quickly established himself as one of the best left backs in all of European football, and, at this point, there shouldn’t really be a question that the Spanish international is the best left back that his league has to offer – with all due respect to Fran García and José Gayà.
The man is just 19 years old and yet is as well-rounded as they come. He is intelligent defensively, almost never getting caught out off the ball or beaten one-on-one. Offensively, Baldé is a top progressor of the ball and an ever-improving passer, providing some biting balls into the penalty area.
Almería AM Lucas Robertone
Lucas Robertone is one of the most underrated players in LaLiga right now, but fans around Spain are starting to catch on to the exciting Argentinian playmaker.
He has two goals and an impressive seven assists for an Almería side that has managed to stay afloat in the relegation battle while still playing some quality football. Attractive to watch, Almería have shocked the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona in their return to the top flight.
Robertone works hard on both ends of the pitch and has become one of the top playmakers in LaLiga this season.
Athletic Club LW Nico Williams
The whole world will be watching Nico Williams soon, as the younger brother of long-time Athletic Club star Iñaki Williams is making quite the name of his own for one of LaLiga’s most historic clubs.
Williams has been essential to Athletic’s push for a European place, often standing out as the difference-maker for the Lions on and off the ball. Though far from the finished product, Williams is steadily improving and shows a maturity with his decision-making in the final third that most 20-year-old wingers do not have.
With six goals, four assists, 2.2 dribbles completed per match, and 1.4 key passes per contest, the younger Williams is clearly on the fast-track to stardom in Spanish football.
Barcelona CB Andreas Christensen
While Andreas Christensen was a known name to your diehard European football fans after spending time with Chelsea, the Danish center back was never quite good enough to be a clear starter for the Blues each week.
Now, though, times have changed. In his first season with Barcelona, Christensen has become one of the top center backs on the continent and a major difference-maker in LaLiga. He has to go down as one of the best signings of any team this summer as a free agent, completely outplaying Real Madrid’s more-hyped free signing at center back from Chelsea, Antonio Rüdiger.
Elite on the ball with his security of passing and unthreatened by even the best of forwards off the ball, Christensen has been the perfect compliment to a legitimately world-class Ronald Araújo at the back.
Celta Vigo CM Gabri Veiga
Probably the big sensation of the season as far as the transfer market is concerned, Gabri Veiga has all the top clubs in European football interested and could even be headed to the Premier League this summer after just one breakout season in LaLiga.
A clear danger to defenses when joining the attack, Veiga has scored some wonderful rockets to help Celta Vigo avoid the relegation doldrums. Veiga has nine goals and four assists even though he is just 20 years old and is not a forward. When it comes to future upside, Veiga may be the most intriguing young star in the league outside of Spanish football’s elite.
Valencia FW Samuel Lino
Amidst another woeful season for the Bats, Samuel Lino’s quality work in carrying the Valencia attack has largely gone underrated, but the 23-year-old Brazilian is quietly becoming one of the most intriguing attacking talents in the Spanish top flight.
Lino has threatened even the best of defenses in this league, offering a non-stop work rate and a willingness to take any defender on. He only has five goals but has offered so much more on the ball with 3.1 combined dribbles completed and fouls drawn per contest for a relegation-threatened Spanish giant.
It will be exciting to track Lino’s progress, especially if he can end up in an attacking situation that favors him more. His finishing, for example, can only improve if he has someone to play off and get more chances. And no, 2023 Edinson Cavani is very much not the answer there.
Valencia CM André Almeida
André Almeida is yet another talented young midfielder in Spanish football generating widespread interest, and he also seems ticketed for a big (well, more like mid-sized) transfer to some Premier League club that needs a promising anchor.
The 22-year-old center midfielder has been overshadowed by Aleix García’s jaw-dropping work with Girona, but he should also be regarded as one of the midfield talents to watch in LaLiga. When it comes to being a transfer target outside Spain, he has the advantage of being under the. age of 23.
Almeida has been able to pull the strings for a Valencia side that has serious deficiencies around him. He has been vital at reading the game defensively and playing the kinds of passes that maintain possession or move the ball forward, keeping Valencia afloat at times. He is a willing ball-winner and a very capable maestro on the ball, with the upside to become one of the finest midfielders in LaLiga in his own right.
Girona RB Arnau Martínez
Right back is a talent-scarce position, including in LaLiga, but Girona have unearthed one of the most promising young players at the position in Arnau Martínez.
Already generating interest from Atlético Madrid and Barcelona, Arnau is so good that he would be a conceivable upgrade for either Spanish giant. Or even Real Madrid above the declining Dani Carvajal.
Martínez has a hefty three goals and three assists this LaLiga season as a right back. The sky is the limit for the 20-year-old, who may very well be the best attacking threat at the position in the entire league. Martínez is drawing 1.9 fouls per game with 1.2 key passes per match.
Villarreal FW Nicolas Jackson
Since returning from his injury, Nicolas Jackson has been one of the most in-form players in LaLiga, upping his finishing and scoring some remarkable goals to help Villarreal pick up valuable points in a very tight European football race.
Jackson had a transfer to Bournemouth fall through, but that may have been the best thing to happen for the young forward. He can now get minutes for Villarreal, grow in importance for one of Europe’s prestigious sides, and continue to refine his finishing and softer skills up top.
One of the most talented young players in LaLiga, Jackson is yet another talent to watch closely at Villareal. If he can keep banging home the goals, there is no telling how far he can go – and how far he can take Villarreal with him if he stays in 2023/24.
The managing editor of The Trivela Effect, Kevin has 15 years of experience in digital media. He covered Real Madrid from 2019-2022 for The Real Champs as a site manager. His work has been featured in ESPN, Bleacher Report, Yahoo! Sports, NBC Sports, and other major outlets. You can contact him at the site’s official Twitter handle @TrivelaEffect or via the site’s official email thetrivelaeffect@gmail.com.