Six months ago, Aymeric Laporte (Agen, 1994) was a player without much hope of playing the Eurocup. He did not play much for his club, Manchester City, and on the French national team, with which he had never played, several players had blocked his way. Now, his future in international football is very different thanks to his good performance, but above all to a timely nationalization that has allowed him to become one of the most important players of the Spanish team in that tournament.
That nationalization had a favorable report from the Higher Sports Council (CSD) which contains a serious error in stating, among the arguments given to defend that the nature card be granted, that Laporte forms a great couple in his team with Virgil van Dijk, footballer with whom he has never played.
“[Laporte] He is a player who has a very special bond with Spanish football, since a large part of his training has been carried out at Athletic Club de Bilbao. In 2010 he joined the youth team of the Basque club (16 years old) and in 2011 he signed his first professional contract, while still a youth. In the 2012-13 season, he made his debut with the Bilbao first team, to which he was linked until 2018, when he became part of the Manchester City squad. In this team he has grown professionally until becoming, together with the Dutch Van Dijk, one of the most recognized center-back couples in international football“Says the report, provided by the CSD to El Confidencial under the Transparency Law.
Click to read the report. –
Laporte and Van Dijk have never shared a team. The former has only played for Athletic Club and Manchester City, while the latter went through Groningen, Celtic and Southampton before arriving at Liverpool in the winter market for the 2017-2018 season.
Being generous, it can be interpreted that the report does not say that they play together, but that they are two of the best center-backs in international football. But Although Laporte is a first-rate footballer, putting him on a level with Van Dijk is perhaps exaggerated. The Dutch central defender, who has not played in the European Championship, was second in the Ballon d’Or 2019 vote and was chosen as the best player in the Premier League in the 2018-2019 season.
Acquisition of nationality by letter of nature is regulated in articles 21 and 23 of the Civil Code and 220 and following of the Civil Registry Regulations. It is of an exceptional nature and allows the Government to grant it at its discretion by means of a royal decree “when exceptional circumstances concur”. What are exceptional circumstances? As they are not limited, in practice almost anything can enter, which gives the Executive the ability to nationalize at will. One of the last examples is the pianist James Rhodes.
In the case of athletes, the trickle of nationalizations has been constant. Governments of the PP, the PSOE and the current coalition between the PSOE and United We Can have done so. Since 1994, almost 100 athletes have achieved nationalization by letter of nature. Some as Nina Zhivanevskaya, Orlando ortega O Talant Dujshebaev, they became stars of Spanish sports. Others like Johann Muehlegg, ended up starring in doping scandals. Before Laporte, the Government also nationalized a Ansu Fati at the request of the RFEF and the CSD. The FC Barcelona player did not play in the Eurocup after missing most of the season due to injury.
The files of these nationalizations are processed by the Ministry of Justice as a priority, as recognized by the Government in a response to two deputies of Citizens in September 2019. “In the specific case of applications from athletes, from the General Directorate of Registries and Notaries of the Ministry of Justice, applications whose nationalization is requested by the Higher Sports Council,” he said.
Luis Enrique and Laporte, in the foreground, before the extension of the Italy-Spain of the Eurocopa. (Reuters) –
These nationalizations are accompanied by a favorable report. In the case of Laporte, the CSD report is dated April 9, 2021. On May 4 it was sent to the Ministry of Justice, which approved the nationalization of the soccer player in the Council of Ministers held on May 11. One day later, during the inauguration of Albert Soler as general director of Sports, the president of the CSD, Jose Manuel Franco, spoke about nationalization. “Since we saw that there was a predisposition, because they considered him to be a good defender and a left-handed central, which are not abundant, we have followed the procedures legally at the request of the RFEF. Now, if he can help us win the European championship, all the better, ”he said.
The report says that Laporte “stands out as one of the best-equipped defenders in Europe from a physical point of view”; that “his corpulence and strength to which he incorporates a significant degree of speed in his movements, make him win most of the duels he disputes”; and that “meets all the conditions to adapt to the style of play of the Spanish National Team”.
“His performance in Manchester City, a team that practices a style of play that has many points in common with that of the Spanish National Team, guarantee him to be an outstanding player, who is easily integrated into the national team’s game system” , continues the report that ends by stating that “his nationalization is considered positive to reinforce an important position within the game scheme of the Spanish National Team at a time when the generational change of the team members coincides ”.
On this, few doubts have remained. Luis Enrique has made him one of the pillars of his team: Laporte has been one of the two national team players who played every minute (the other is Unai Simón). Although the defensive level of the team has left doubts, the performance of the French-Spanish player has been good and it seems clear that he will be in the next calls.
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