It is already official. Espanyol will celebrate its 120th anniversary in the Second Division. 26 years later, the white-and-blue entity returns to the silver category after seeing its fifth descent completed. The defeat at the Camp Nou, in a match where he competed from start to finish, was the final blow to a disastrous season. The worst, probably, in the entire history of the club, which had never before descended to three days from the end. This is corroborated by the numbers, but also by the feelings of a team without soul or football. Fatal outcome for a course that had begun full of excitement, with the return to Europe after 12 years of absence. The dream, however, has ended up turning into an unimaginable nightmare just a year ago.
The parakeet organization has not managed a course in which everything has happened to him. Starting with the departure of the builders of his success, in the summer, and continuing with a covid-19 that hit the staff and the white-and-blue coaching staff hard. It will be useless for this to be the longest season in history, with 382 days between the first training session, on July 3, 2019, and the last match, which will be played on the 19th. No one has been able to reverse a dynamic that had been worrisome for months.
Rubi, the first to raise his voice
The white-and-blue project, however, began to die a little earlier, on May 18, 2019. In full euphoria for the European classification, and while Cornellà-El Prat danced to the rhythm of the Love always, Rubi called on the club to make an effort for the following year. His request, however, was not heeded. Neither Chen met with him nor did Roger Guasch and the council change their policy of reinvesting more than half of what they entered into transfers. No one paid attention to him. Two weeks later, however, everyone was surprised to see that he decided to bet on the Betis project. He was accused of treason, but he was the only one who warned of a wrong policy that the club has ended up paying dearly for.
This has probably been the biggest mistake made so far by Chen Yansheng at the helm of Espanyol. Of all the coaches who have passed during his tenure, eight, Rubi has been the only one who has fitted in perfectly with the idea of the club, embodying an identity in the team that enthused the fans. The results prove him right. Disillusionment with the project led him to also be the only one who left it of his own free will. Since he left, Espanyol has opted for three profiles far removed from that of Maresme, who, apart from having nothing in common, have also not been able to take advantage of their footballing legacy.
The associative capacity that Rubi applied in the middle of the field, and that broke with the mediocrity that the club dragged for years, was the great sign of identity of the game of the maresmenc. This year, on the other hand, Roca, Darder, Melendo and Granero have had a residual role with all the coaches they have had. They have been the main victims of over-air and direct play, which constantly omitted the midfield. And the team, which was not designed to play that, has ended up resenting it.
The changes on the bench do not exclude, however, a staff that has not been able to react in time with any of the technicians who have been marching. The same players who were able to put Barça, Atlético, Sevilla or Villarreal against the ropes ended up giving away points with children’s mistakes against Osasuna, Valladolid, Levante or Leganés. The staff is largely to blame for a decline with many responsible. Leaders and collective trust have been lacking. And, as Machín said, there are “pipiolis” left over. The most expensive staff in history (83 million euros) has been the poorest on the grass. Money, of course, does not always give happiness. This summer we will have to do a thorough overhaul of a dressing room with many names that have not been up to par.
Europe, a double tall weapon
Beyond the economic return and some occasional joys, such as the establishment of the European unbeaten record (26 unbeaten matches, leaving behind the 21 of Van Gaal’s Ajax) or the highest continental thrashing in the history of the entity (6-0 at Ludogorets), European participation has ended up being detrimental to the team. Espanyol will close the season with 55 games played, its second highest figure, surpassed only by the 57 of 2006-07.
Espanyol would have done well to remember the headaches it had in the seasons in which it had combined three competitions. There are twelve of them, with the current one, and in six of them he has ended up suffering bravely in the League. In four courses he avoided relegation with agony, while in two more he ended up losing the category. Europe is a road full of risks, a very dangerous distraction for a team that was not prepared for it. This year’s European hangovers prove it: after playing in the Europa League they have only added 6 points out of a possible 33 in the League. Once eliminated from Europe, things did not improve.
Disappointing signings
That the management of the staff was not adequate indicates the offices. From Rufete to Chen, passing through Guasch and Perarnau. Only 18 of the nearly 40 million entered by Borja Iglesias and Mario Hermoso went to reinforcements. But neither Vargas nor Calero, two bets on the future with only a year of experience in the elite, have so far met the expectations generated by their cost. Both have gone from strength to strength in a course in which they have ended up in ostracism. Neither Calleri nor Ferreyra have performed better, called to be the offensive benchmarks after the departure of the Panda. Between the two they only add two goals in the League, one per head. The truth is that almost no one has lived up to the circumstances.
In the middle of the course, Chen restructured the organization chart for the umpteenth time. He dispensed with the two general directors and recovered José María Durán Farré to lead the new project. Together with Rufete they will be the architects of the fifth year of Espanyol in Segona. The investment they made together in the winter market, more than 40 million, is a sign of what is to come. A paradigm shift. With the club sane, the money should be on the turf. It needs a Spaniard who will only have one goal next year: to return to Primera on the first try.
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