The wait is almost over – after the joy and emotion of promotion on that wondrous day in Cadiz back in May, Real Oviedo kick off the new season next weekend and we can’t wait!!!
The wait is almost over – after the joy and emotion of
promotion on that wondrous day in Cadiz back in May, Real Oviedo kick off the
new season next weekend and we can’t wait!!!
So what does the next 10 months have in store you may ask.
Well I hope to give you the low down on the ins and outs of the summer and a
look ahead to how we may fair in the Segunda division.
There is no doubting this year is going to be tougher than
last year. This is obviously always the case when a team goes up a division.
You just have to look at some of our forthcoming fixtures to realise we have
stepped up in class and some of the fixtures look mouth-watering. It feels
great to be back and with all due respect to the Segunda B division it will be
nice playing in larger stadiums each week in front of larger crowds. Some of
the away fixtures in the last 12 years or so have felt like we have been
playing at a non-league ground.
As is the case in most Spanish football outside of La Liga
then tends to be a knack of players being on short term ( 1 or 2 year )
contracts therefore the changeover of personnel in the playing staff is quite
high and we are no different. It is not quite as high a turnover as in previous
seasons though as Egea looks to keep the spine of the side that did so well in
gaining promotion. There have been a few who have left the club though and
these are defenders Sergio Sanchez, Charlie l’Anson ( Was only on loan and has
returned to Elche ) and Redondo along with Dioni, Eneko and Sergio Garcia.
It would be fair to say none of the departed were regular
starters during last season although most did impress at one point or another.
A stronger squad however is what Sergio Egea must build for the rigours of the
Segunda season. There is an extra 4 games as the league consists of 22 teams so
the regular season is 42 games rather than the normal 38.
There are several new faces that have walked through the
doors of the Carlos Tartiere during the summer. Here is a brief introduction to
them:
Ruben Mino – A goalkeeper from Mallorca who has played 42
times for them after coming through the youth system at Barcelona. Has 2 caps
for Spain U21’s
Carlos Pena – Extremely experienced left back who arrives
from Valladolid with whom he played 163 times. Also played over 100 games for
Albacete and Barcelona B. Has 10 caps for Spain U21’s. Judging by Twitter, fans
of Valladolid are disappointed he has gone.
Hector Verdes – Central defender who signs from Alcorcon.
Experienced Segunda defender who has also played for Elche, Barcelona B &
Valencia B.
Borja Gomez – Much travelled centre back whose career has
seen him play for Alcorcon, Hercules and Lugo. Has top-flight experience in
Spain with Rayo Vallecano and Granada as well as a spell in the Ukrainian top
flight with Karpaty Lviv. Only 27 and came through the Real Madrid youth set
up.
Edu Bedia - 26 Year
old midfielder who came through the youth ranks at Racing Santander playing for
the first team 34 times. Also played for Salamanca, Hercules and Barcelona B as
well as a short stint in Germany with 1860 Munich. Another one with Spain U21
caps.
Toche – Very experienced centre forward who joins us from
Deportivo La Coruna where he played 37 times including in La Liga where he scored
8 goals. Prior to that had a spell in the Greek top flight with Panathinaikos
where he had a record of nearly a goal every other game. Has Segunda experience
with a number of clubs before his spell in Greece.
Jose Manuel Fernandez – Right back who joins on loan from
Zaragoza. He has played over 50 games for both Zaragoza and Cordoba.
Hervais – Probably the most exciting signing of the summer.
The highly rated 22 year old winger arrives on a season long loan from Real
Sociedad. Played La liga games last season for La Real. He also played against
Real Oviedo in the Copa del Rey last season.
Add these players to the remaining crop as well as the
potential/probable arrival of Kone from Racing Santander and we have a very
strong squad, which in my opinion is more than capable of competing in the
Segunda division.
We have had a decent pre-season winning the majority of
games including a 2-1 win over La liga outfit Deportivo and a penalty shoot out
win away at Rayo Vallecano. We also turned in a decent performance against La
Liga giants Atletico Madrid before going down 2-0.
Although results are largely irrelevant in pre season, we
can’t ignore the fact we have been playing well and the new players seem to be
gelling into the squad and there is every reason to be optimistic.
Who should we fear? : The short and simple answer is no-one.
We should respect these teams but not fear them. They deserve our respect, as
most are experienced Segunda clubs who have been there for a number of years.
The favourites for promotion are likely to be Almeria who
seem to be a bit of a yo yo club whereby they seem too good for the Segunda
division and not quite good enough for La liga. The other team likely to be
pushing for the title are Real Zaragoza. Zaragoza were narrowly denied
promotion to La Liga last year in the play off after missing out to Las Palmas.
Some people seem to be tipping Alaves to do quite well so
they could be around the play off spots. The 2 relegated teams from last season
along with Almeria were Cordoba and Elche. Neither are fancied too much to be a
serious threat. Cordoba mainly due to their disastrous campaign in La Liga has
probably left scars and Elche have lost virtually their entire squad from last
year after all sorts of off field problems. They in fact were only saved from
Relegation to Segunda B at the 11th hour.
Girona should have of course gone up automatically but let
in a last minute equaliser which opened the door for Sporting Gijon to go up.
Girona fell apart in the 2nd leg of the play offs but I expect them
to be strong and to get at least a play off spot. I also expect Valladolid to
compete for the play offs.
Other than this I don’t see too much to be too worried about
and expect us to have a good season and if we get momentum to hopefully reach
the play offs.
My top 6 ( in no particular order ) is Almeria, Zaragoza,
Girona, Valladolid, Alaves and Real Oviedo. ( brave prediction I know – don’t
blame me if im wrong )
The season kicks off on Sunday 23rd August
when we are at home to Lugo. Lugo finished 15th last season and won
only 2 away games in the whole of last season. Here’s hoping we get off to a
perfect start with 3 valuable points.
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