THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY
BORDALAS' RULES
THE GOOD
The story of Getafe’s push for European
football was one of the big stories from the
2018-19 La Liga season as Jose Bordalas’
side shocked Spain’s big guns with their
pragmatic and refreshing style.
Their end-of-season form ultimately
unravelled a forceful drive for a top four
finish as they won just one of the last six
league games and were forced to ‘settle’ for
a Europa League spot in 2019-20. However,
despite their expected dip in performance
levels this season, as they juggled
European football with a demanding league
campaign, Bordalas’ side have come back
even stronger.
The key to this was the retention of key
players this summer, as interest in Dakonam
Djene and Nemanja Maksimovic was firmly
rebuffed despite reported big money offers.
Bordalas added some extra flair with
the signing of Faycal Fajr, and defensive
reinforcements in Allan Nyom and Xabi
Etxeita, and each new face has added
something.
Tactically, Bordalas has stuck to his
principles of prioritising defensive shape,
with the combative Maksimovic in front
of his back four. But he has also managed
to continue to effectively rotate his front
pairing between Angel Rodriguez, Jorge
Molina and Jaime Mata, and this has
provided the platform for turning draws
into key wins.
Keeping three players fighting for two
positions happy is never an easy task,
but Bordalas has tweaked his system,
introduced rest periods and kept the trio
motivated, particularly when a goal has
been needed from the bench.
Confidence in their consistency in front of
goal has allowed the rest of the team to
focus on their primary tasks, safe in the
knowledge that the effectiveness of the
players at the top of the team means Getafe
are always in with a chance of beating any
opponent.THE BAD
Espanyol looked to roll the managerial dice
during the winter break as the Catalan side
made their third managerial appointment of
the season.
Rubi’s departure in the summer created a
void in both a coaching sense but also in
a footballing philosophy at the club. The
subsequent appointment of former youth
team boss David Gallego inspired little
confidence within supporters and his reign
lasted just six weeks into the season.
Owner Chen Yansheng then looked to
react quickly and brought in former GironaBordalas has stuck
to his principles
of prioritising
defensive shape,
with the combative
Maksimovic in front
of his back four.