Three years living the dream

Another campaign is underway and CD Lugo are still up there. What seemed like a pipe-dream for a team in the Tercera División a decade ago is now a reality in the walled Galician city. The 2014/15 season is the team’s third consecutive outing in the Liga Adelante, a division it had only ever graced once before. Back then, in the 1992/93 season, their brief spell there only lasted one year. They are now in their third on the trot, a record for the team with two men at the helm, Quique Setién in the dugout and Carlos Mouriz in the office.

It was job done last season. The side stood out for its possessive football and spent some time in the automatic promotion spots for the first time in its history, although they fell out of the race at the sharp end of the season and did not guarantee safety until the final match. The team appeared to have benefitted from the extreme competitiveness of the championship, a factor that could play into their hands again in the coming months.

Arrivals and exits  There have been a number of changes in the dressing room in the Ángel Carro. Important players such as Vincenzo Rennella are no longer there, but the technical department, with Mouriz at the helm, have rubbed the magic lamp once more to make some solid changes (David López and David Aganzo, among others) without forgetting those that have come up from the lower ranks. In defence Jon García, Albert Dalmau and Borja Gómez have joined the fold. The latter’s arrival, on loan from Granada CF appears to have been of particular importance. He is the only player who looks to have made room for himself among the immovable trio of David De Coz, Manuel Pavón and the captain, Manu.

There have also been changes in the middle of the park, but one thing has been cast in stone with the passing of the years, the Carlos Pita - Fernando Seoane duo, two of the best players of the team’s Galician contingent. A little further forward, Iriome and David Ferreiro will have the chance to re-establish themselves as important members of the squad, although one of the fan favourites in the midfield is David López, an ex-Athletic Club and CA Osasuna player who has returned to Spanish football after a spell in England. 

Finding the net: problems and solutionsJudging by the opening matches, creating chances and clinical finishing continue to be somewhat lacking for Lugo. Last season, they were the second-lowest goal-scoring team in the championship, therefore, as confirmed by Quique Setién throughout the season, the team’s chances may rely on their effectiveness in front of goal. While they do not often find the back of the net, other teams also struggle to find theirs. This is patently clear in the side’s stats from the first five matches: one goal scored, three conceded, six points.

Having seen the back of the imbalance created by Rennella, the pressure now falls on the shoulders of young gun Luis Fernández and the experienced boots of Jonathan Valle and David Aganzo, household names in Spanish football. A large part of the Rojiblancos' success or failure will depend on them in this new assault on the topflight.