Dumped by United, Forlan now one of Spain’s best

VILLARREAL striker Diego Forlan is being hailed as one of the best forwards in Spain just six months after being off-loaded by Premiership side Manchester United for his inability to hit the back of the net.

It may come as a surprise to many fans at Old Trafford, who saw the Uruguayan international fail to hold down a regular first-team place after struggling for so long to score his first goal for the Red Devils. But it has been a different story since he joined the Primera Liga club in the summer.

He scored on his debut for his new employers against champions Valencia and since then, Forlan has scored nine more goals to make him the third highest goalscorer in the league behind Barcelona’s Samuel Eto’o and Ronaldo of Real Madrid.

Forlan now has the opportunity to etch a place in history at Villarreal as he needs only five more goals to make him their highest-ever scorer in a season.

And his performances have not gone unnoticed in the Spanish press, with a number of papers describing him as the in-form striker in the Primera Liga.

“Things are going a lot better for me than they did in England,” said Forlan. “But it is important now to keep my feet on the floor because the team still has not done anything and the season is very long.

“Obviously at the moment all is well, but the end of the campaign is when it counts.”

Forlan’s predatory instincts saw him score twice against league leaders Barcelona a fortnight ago, as the leaders slipped to only their second defeat of the season.

He also netted twice on Sunday as the side from El Madrigal defeated Levante 4-2.

But the South American is quick to praise his team-mates for Villarreal’s impressive run this season, which sees them progressing strongly in the Uefa Cup as well as in the La Liga, where they lie in seventh place after 19 games.

“The team is playing very well and winning important games which is the key.

When you are receiving balls from Juan Roman Riquelme, Antonio Guayre and Hector Font it is a luxury.

“I am enjoying this moment very much and it is good to see that my goals are winning games for Villarreal.”