The Pride of Vallekas

When Spain was internationally isolated under Franco, Real Madrid's European Cup titles provided political capital for the dictator - a way of showing success and prosperity. One minister even went on to say "Real Madrid are the best ambassadors we've ever had". Talk about out-of-touch with the country. It was Atlético - the team of the working class at the time, that regularly chanted that Real was "el equipo del gobierno, la vergüenza del país". The team of the government, the shame of the country. It's amazing to think that were it not for the rise of the modern ultra movement, and Rayo Vallecano's rise into professional football which meant they became known as the "true" left-wing club in Madrid, Atlético would have been the sole symbol of resistance in Madrid. But they are an important symbol nevertheless, perhaps undercut by Atlético moving stadiums. The location of the Vicente Calderón symbolized local engagement, being near...

My new series, called the Silly Season Accumulator, lists all the rumors that have ever been mentioned on the internet about Rayo. Yes - all of them. Just to show you how ridiculous this machine is - a machine that creates meaningless content masquerading as journalism. If that's harsh, that's because the irony is that more rumors gives me more material. And that material gets in the way of the stories that matter. Here's all the rumors for this week: Álex Bergantiños is a target for Sporting, Tenerife and Rayo. Rayo have been linked with him in the past - but Sporting are in a better position to sign him. Alberto García is a target for Rayo. The Getafe goalkeeper still has two years remaining on his contract. A few days later, and talks of a loan deal are said to be all but confirmed. Edit: Done deal! Goalkeeper Alejandro Remiro (Athletic Bilbao) has been linked with a move to Rayo, Huesca and Cultural Leonesa. Răzvan Raț has taken a week off, and is reportedly n...

Age is just a number. It's a number that can be used as an excuse for failure. It's an abstract standard, a barrier that we create to ourselves, a false benchmark of our abilities. Many players have made their La Liga or even professional debuts late in their careers. And, if you've read this blog, you'll know I love these stories and writing about them. But it's easy to forget how commonplace that story really is. So commonplace, in fact, that there's someone at Rayo that can relate. Someone who competed for Segunda and Segunda B teams till the age of 29. Someone whose versatility has meant a progression from left midfielder to left back, and finally to center back. And someone whose professionalism means he is still going strong at the age of 35 - it was  actually  his birthday day before yesterday! Dorado was born in Córdoba, and began playing football in his hometown, passing through the lower categories of Córdoba. At a territorial championship, Real...

I'm not going to pretend that I'm a know-it-all when it comes to tactics. But, hey, worth a shot right? Faith is a funny thing. Three games, one point, zero goals. Zero. Going into that Oviedo game, not even the most optimistic of Rayo fans expected anything out of that game. After such a demoralizing start to the season, even Faith had taken a vacation. And in the darkest of times, somehow, from somewhere, Rayo found the strength to compete. That fateful day, Rayo lined up a little like this, with Lass Bangoura playing instead of Santi Comesaña. Three things became crucial in Míchel's Rayo side. First is the defense - specifically the full backs. Second is the role of the media punta. And finally, the crucial roles of wingers Ebert and Embarba. It's a delicately balanced machine, that works well for these players. Just look at the main attacking move for Rayo: Ebert dribbles inwards with the ball. At the same time, Guerra moves slightly t...

Given that now Baena has also signed for Granada - that's three Rayo players to the club in two years - you can excuse the frustration that I feel. And it may not even be the end - Manucho, Ebert, Nacho, Dorado, Dovale and Miku, among others I'm surely forgetting, are all free to sign for other clubs.  Granada have taken legends from Rayo - Juan José Collantes, Piti, Tito, and now Baena too. And what makes it even more painful is that it's so simple. Money talks. TL;DR: I hate Granada. He was just one of three players to stay with the club from 2004 all the way till 2008, when Rayo jumped out of the well and into the Segunda. The name? Juan José Collantes, who joined Rayo midway through the 2004-05 season also at the age of 21 after roaming around in Villareal (Juvenil), CD Onda, Palamos CF, and Racing de Santander B. A right winger, he would score 12 goals in the 2007-08 Segunda B, and along with Sergio Pachón (16 goals), Míchel (10 goals) and Piti (7 goals) g...

My new series,  called the Silly Season Accumulator, lists all the rumors that have ever been mentioned on the internet about Rayo. Yes - all of them. Just to show you how ridiculous this machine is - a machine that creates meaningless content masquerading as journalism. If that's harsh, that's because the irony is that more rumors gives me more material. And that material gets in the way of the stories that matter. Here's all the rumors for this week. It's less this time, because the actual news took precedent: Baena has reportedly accepted a better offer from Osasuna over Rayo. Manucho has rejected the first offer on the table but the desire to renew is still there. Dorado's renewal is all but closed - an official announcement is imminent. Huesca striker Borja Lázaro is reportedly linked to a move to Rayo. He has a contract till 2019, but José Luis Ortas, Huesca's general director, has said there are no offers on the table. Paulo Gazzaniga has been ...

A lot of what goes missing in football analysis is the fact that being a professional football is an actual job. Many who enter the profession think about the food they put on the table for their families. They think about the future since the job only pays well till the early thirties. They think about bigger and better clubs offering bigger and better opportunities. They think, constantly, about the next step in their careers. Understandably though, most fans don't see a player playing for their club as a job - as an honor, or as a responsibility, but certainly not as a job. One way professional football is harder, aside from the competition of course, is job security. One-year contracts are the norm for most teams. That, along with miserly termination clauses and relegation clauses that cut wages significantly means that Spanish football, and indeed football in many second tiers in the world, produce numerous journeymen who bounce around from club to club, with no clue w...

Gazzaniga Mejías Galán Quini Rat Á.Moreno Amaya Íñiguez Trashorras Baena Santi F.Beltrán Jordi Embarba Ebert Lass Manucho J.Guerra #RayoLugo pic.twitter.com/KtMhuO5rT4 — Rayo Vallecano (@RVMOficial) April 21, 2017 Compared to last week - Pablo Iñiguez, Răzvan Raț and Lass are back in the squad, and Míchel confirmed that Pablo would play. Not out of pity, out of necessity - Toño, Pablo Clavería and Dorado are out due to injuries and Zé Castro is out due to suspension. Plus, Miku, Cristaldo, Aguirre and Nacho are out too. It's a shame - a Venezuela international, a Boca Junior hot prospects, an ex-Toledo hot prospect and youth graduate and Rayo's second captain won't even grace the Vallekas bench, much less the pitch. Expect a bumpy game, with many cards. The referee for the game is Jorge Figueroa Vázquez, one of the toughest referees in the division. In the 17 games he has refereed this season he has dished out 75 yellow cards and ...

Four. There were four ex-Rayistas in the Oviedo squad. Néstor Susaeta, who oversaw Rayo's return to La Liga after eight years; David Fernández, Vallekas born-and-bred, who became a legend with Real Oviedo by guiding them to the Segunda, and did the same with Guadalajara for the first time in their history; Michu, who was La Liga's highest scoring midfielder and would later on become the bargain of the Premier League, costing Swansea £2 million; and Jonathan Pereira, who scored the goal to secure Villarreal's swift return to La Liga. All four of them played against Rayo yesterday. And none of them turned up. Rayo Vallecano played against a team and won convincingly - a sentence that has not been said for a long, long time. The pairing of Trashorras and Fran Beltrán was a revelation. Fran was hustling and bustling while Trashorras kept the game ticking. Lass terrorized the right flank, while Álex Moreno terrorized the left. Embarba kept popping into space, and Javi G...