The Pride of Vallekas

Most signings that have featured in this A-Z guide have been those that worked out, and that's a testament to Rayo's technical management. This is a story of the opposite. He lasted just 16 minutes. Rayo were losing at home to Real Zaragoza 1-0, and Juande Ramos had one substitution left. It was the last throw of the dice - midfielder Jordi Ferrón was taken off for him, a striker. That was his Rayo legacy. Born in Luanda, Portuguese Angola, striker Quinzinho signed with Porto in 1995 from local club Atlético Sport Aviação (ASA). He was sparingly played during his spell at the former club as he was barred by Domingos Paciência first and later Mário Jardel, also being loaned to fellow Primeira Liga sides Leiria and Rio Ave. After a third loan spell to Rayo Vallecano in the latter half of the 1998-99 season, Quinzinho returned to Portugal where he represented in quick succession, always in the top division and still owned by Porto, Farense, Aves and Alverca. In Ja...

Today's article is not filled with words. Rather, it is a mini-project I've been working on for a week but have decided to end. I was trying to assemble photos of Abdoulaye Ba in the news - all of them. Yes, every transfer rumor and done deal that I could find. Why, you ask?  I was trying to see what attention a "promising" youngster actually gets. I attempted to do all, but settled on news mentions to Premier League clubs, a league he has never played in. And even if I missed out a mention here or there, what I found was a fabricated ecosystem that we all consume. I hope you enjoy watching it from the outside. The first time Abdoulaye Ba became a "thing" was July 3, 2012, when talkSPORT linked him to West Ham, Stoke City and QPR. Then ESPN linked him to Aston Villa: And then the Daily Mail reported that the deal looked dead: But Mail Online wouldn't give up, saying that Aston Villa wouldn't give up. But then nothing. ...

"Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free" At the end of the 2014-15 season, Rayo survived comfortably, and surviving felt normal. It wasn't. It never was, and never again will be taken for granted. It's surprising that I took it for granted then. We were on the division’s smallest budget. We lost our best center-back - and sometimes our free-kick taker ahead of Trashorras - in Alejandro Gálvez. We lost out best striker in Joaquín Larrivey. We lost our best goalkeeper in Rubén Martínez. We lost midfielder Adrián González. We even lost Anaitz Arbilla - a player who went from being a Segunda player with Hércules to becoming a La Liga quality defender and earning a move to Espanyol. In 18 months. With so much quality leaving the squad, Rayo were backed into a corner. And in that situation, apart from Antonio Amaya returning to Rayo from Real Betis, Rayo had to compensate by bringing in quantity. Rayo's 2013-14 squad R...

More than three weeks ago, I did a piece on my thoughts on Rayo's current squad , and I spoke about the dire need for reinforcements. Well, now that the transfer window has concluded, here is what I said then, compared to my thoughts now... Goalkeepers Then : Alberto García (loan), Toño Adequate? Not sure, given Toño's injury problems, but Lucho from Rayo B seems like optimal backup if truly necessary. Now: Alberto García (loan), Toño, Mario Fernández Seems like Toño is still not ready for action - which means perhaps a signing was probably necessary. Mario Fernández from Osasuna will be a decent backup. Center-backs Then: Antonio Amaya, Zé Castro, José Antonio Dorado Definitely understaffed here - one more center-back might be needed, even if Kike from the B team did well in preseason. Now: Antonio Amaya, José Antonio Dorado, Emiliano Velázquez (loan), Abdoulaye Ba, Nacho Monsalve (loaned to Recreativo) So apparently Zé Castro wasn't even p...

@DonDiegoVaula is a 30 year old Norwegian who lives in Oslo and has been passionate about football since the age of six. His local team is SK Brann from his hometown Bergen. Go ahead and follow him on Twitter! How long have you been a fan of Rayo and what made you support them in the first place? I've been a proper fan of Rayo for four years now. I used to write for a Norwegian football site, and because everyone else supported either Real Madrid or Barca I chose to write about the other teams. I had my own section where I would write previews and summaries every round about a match not involving the two "big" clubs. I watched an enormous amount of games that year, and I was intrigued by Rayo both because of the fans and the style of play. One of my first special features was on Rayo and I read up on the club and its history, and that was it. I decided they would be my club from then on - it all just appealed to me. Describe your first visit ever to Vallecas and t...