Good numbers and some doubts at Athletic

If they maintain this projection, adding 1.84 points per game, Athletic will increase to 70 points, almost a Champions League number. It’s a shame football isn’t an exact math subject.

Last season, the team reached the World Cup break in fourth place and then fell in the second round to finish in eighth with losses that were as unexpected as they were painful. You couldn’t have a worse ending ‘txanpa’. The fans are happy with the progress of Valverde’s team, but the fly is behind their ear. A number of players have arrived stuck in the latter stages of the season due to low rotation and many see some similarities to what happened last campaign.

The last game against Celta was a good summary of how the team is doing in this League. He feels strong in attack with players capable of making a difference and unbalance a game at any moment and, at the same time, unable to close a game due to his weakness in defense. We have recent examples of this: Celta, Villarreal, Rubí…

The template is configured incorrectly. We all know that a fourth central part is missing, but we decided not to spend and cross our fingers so that there are no injuries and the three can share the whole season between them. Big mistake.

Yeray was barely able to help his teammates so Vivian and Paredes had to hold the team back from the danger it entailed. The latter had to play injured in the last two games and noticed a drop in his performance. It’s logical for a young kid and it’s not about picking him because Vivian didn’t have his best game against Celta either and even De Marcos played below his level, especially in the first half. The best in defense was Iñigo Lekue who again played at the expense of Imanol, leaving Unai Simón on the sidelines still a step or two above the rest.

Solutions

The team has a serious problem in defense. He appears so soft and suffering so much, it’s something we all see. If your defenses are not at 100% and you add to that a bad game from who should help you, Mikel Vesga, the result is three goals conceded against an opponent who is in relegation, although there good attacking players, things as they are .

The team has become decapitalized in the central axis and so far there are no magic solutions. If Valverde does not trust the center backs of the quarry, he will have to drag Paredes and Vivian until they can last, which is not much because the Arrigorriaga native has already accumulated four yellow cards. In the winter market you can sign, but the board looks like you don’t want to open your wallet, especially when everyone is waiting for you with their balaclava on and the team is advancing in the games.

In short, we have to endure the strain with temporary patches until Yeray recovers. Unless the Barakaldo player’s recovery is in doubt, it looks like Athletic won’t invest in January.