A great circle around a single voice, that of the coach. Sporting returned to training this Monday after the toughest defeat since the arrival of Miguel Ángel Ramírez on the bench. The session began after a talk by the technician with the group. Mirandés’ four goals at El Molinón have shaken the open process around the canary. The team had not conceded so many league goals since October and doubts grow as the relegation zone approaches six points. “It’s time to rethink things, change,” Ramírez assumed after the match. The open gap in defense and the option of recovering the back of five, under examination.
Undefended. Sporting have conceded nine goals in Miguel Ángel Ramírez’s eight games in charge of the team. Almost half of them, last Sunday, against Mirandés. It is not an anecdote, it seems more like the consequence of a situation that has been repeating itself especially in the last two days. Both in Albacete and against Mirandés, the defensive weakness of the team has been latent and cost the defeat.
Stopped ball. Five of the goals received under the new coach have come from set pieces. They cost four defeats and a draw. In a corner kick the team lost in Leganés; a foul cost the draw against Huesca at home; the team lost a penalty in Andorra; another corner kick opened Albacete’s comeback at the Belmonte and a throw-in started the rout for Mirandés at El Molinón. Repeating mistakes.
System. Miguel Ángel Ramírez bet on his arrival for a defense of five that he maintained during his first games. It was a formula that restored a certain defensive stability and made the team move in short results with few goals. He changed the system from the beginning against Tenerife, betting on a defense of four. A long-suffering victory was achieved before the defeats against Albacete and Mirandés. It is the first time that the team has lost two games under the new coach. In the visit to Burgos (Sunday 19, 2:00 p.m.) there may be new changes.
hard calendar. Sporting now begins a calendar that will take them to measure themselves in the next five days against two teams in the play-offs and another that occupies a place of direct promotion. The most immediate thing will be to play two games in a row away from El Molinón, against Burgos and Unión Deportiva Las Palmas, second place in the latter. The next thing will be to receive Granada, fourth in the table. After visiting Ibiza, the team will face Alavés, fifth in the standings, at the Gijón municipal stadium.
Save yourself, in hand. The eleven days that remain also show that Sporting has in his hand to tie salvation. The rojiblancos still have to face four of the five teams that are chasing them in the table. Of these, Oviedo, Lugo and Ponferradina must go through El Molinón. The match against the Bercianos, who mark the relegation, will be the last day of the League.
Like a year ago. Sporting repeats the ghosts experienced just a year ago. At this point in the season, the rojiblancos were eighteenth and had 35 points. Now, they are seventeenth and have 36. The distance to relegation was then 5 points, while now it is 6. Numbers traced for a final that, as on that occasion, seems headed for a permanence in trouble.
Coach’s talk with Varane and De Amores
If at the beginning of the training he addressed the group, at the end he held individualized meetings. Miguel Ángel Ramírez had a talk yesterday with Varane and Guillermo de Amores at the end of the session. It was on the grass of field 2 of Mareo, the scene of the training. First, with the Uruguayan goalkeeper, who still does not have minutes after arriving in the winter market to relieve Diego Mariño. Later, with Varane, who has been gaining participation since the transfer of José Gragera to Espanyol. The players from the subsidiary Marcos, Aarón and Pol Marín also participated in the session.
