His importance stands in stark contrast to the start of the season, when he barely had any opportunities during the first three matchdays, playing just nine minutes in the opener in Tarragona. The Basque coach placed his full trust in Pau Sans in the attacking midfield position behind the striker, leaving Rubén Díez out of the equation both there and in the double pivot.
Jamelli is one of the team's biggest chance creators, having produced six key passes. Photo: Pilar Álvarez
But everything changed in the match against Cartagena, when he was Real Zaragoza's best player during his time on the pitch, and he has started every game since. Over the last three matchdays, he has played 207 of a possible 270 minutes, and his absence from the attack has always been noticeable when he has been taken off.
HIS NUMBERS
Against Cartagena, he broke through the wall during his 58 minutes on the pitch. The attacking midfielder made two key passes and misplaced just one of the five passes he attempted in the final third. He also won the ball back as many as four times, although he was not accurate in front of goal, missing two clear chances against the Cartagena side. However, that performance appears to have earned him Ibai Gómez's trust because of the distinctive quality the Zaragoza-born player brings.
At Can Misses, he once again showed that his vision is decisive at this level, but his match against Teruel was arguably his best performance so far. The attacking midfielder completed as many as 32 passes, 15 of them in the final third, making him one of the team's biggest chance creators as he supplied up to four key passes to his teammates.
The attacking midfielder has clearly won the position ahead of Pau Sans and has shown that he makes a difference in the final third. Photo: Pilar Álvarez
His only area for improvement is his statistics, as he has not provided any assists despite everything he has created. He has also lacked precision in front of goal, having had clear chances but failing to finish them effectively and translate his overall impact into numbers.
THE COMPARISON WITH PAU SANS
His rival for the attacking midfield position is Pau Sans, although the academy graduate has seen his influence diminish as the matchdays have gone by. His debut in Tarragona was not entirely negative, as he was the Blanquillos' most dangerous attacker, but he was ineffective against Antequera and Torremolinos, and his presence on the pitch was barely felt. In addition, he was substituted at halftime in the match in Málaga, reflecting that the attacker was not having his day.
Despite being relegated to the bench over the last three matchdays, he has only failed to get minutes in Ibiza. Against Teruel, however, he started on the left wing to take advantage of his pace in behind rather than positioning himself behind Joaquín Delgado.
It was against the Teruel side that he scored his first goal of the season, and with Vadillo injured, the Valdefierro native appears set to play more minutes on the left wing as Ureña's rival, given that he has not made a difference behind the striker. Rubén Díez has completely taken the spot from him in that position and has gone from being overlooked to becoming one of Ibai Gómez's regular starters for the current Primera RFEF leaders.
