The Pride of Vallekas

"I have only good words for the Bukaneros, I have been in Vallecas with so many different people (friends, family, coworkers...) and all of them were amazed by the way the Bukaneros transmit their support both the team and the rest of the crowd. They are the real supporters, they are always singing and cheering. It doesn't matter if the team is winning or losing.... Also, it's incredible how they support all the categories, you can go to a game from Rayo’s female team and they will be there with you, the same with the youth teams, if the alevín (10 and 11 years old kids) are playing a tournament, the Bukaneros will be there supporting - it's really amazing how they live and breathe Rayo Vallecano. The Bukaneros are not only a hooligan group, they fight for something, they are committed with a lot of social actions and they have all my respect. Life is not just about football." That was an interview with Daniel Kobe in yesterday's piece (read it here ) as p...

In light of the fact that Rayo B might return to the regional leagues, where Rayo B haven't played since 1988... They had topped their group - by 11 points, no less - but that was not enough. They had to play L'Hospitalet over two legs, they were at the  Municipal Feixa Llarga and 1-0 down, with only seconds to go. A free kick from the halfway line results in a corner on the left hand side. Confusion in the box. Calls for a penalty while the Rayo player run to take another corner from the other side of the pitch. Step forward, Borja García. The goalkeeper misses the cross, and it's an easy tap in - Sandoval's team are up into the Segunda B. In the 97th minute, Rayo B had made it. In other news, Javier Tebas confirmed that Rayo has an agreement with the NASL that a new franchise will be created within two years - reportedly in Omaha or Las Vegas, Betis' Rafael Salas apologized for his previous comments about Zozulya (which I talked about here ), and Sa...

I've been avoiding this topic, but things are just getting ridiculous now and I wanted to give a very quick take on it. Yesterday was the deadline for Zozulya to "return" to Rayo. Now, there have been a lot of disagreeements. Rayo fans don't want him in the team. Tebas and Presa are willing to charge fans who drove Zozulya out. And the Agrupación de Peñas del Rayo, or la Plataforma ADRV, has called for an assembly in the Rayo locker room to resolve the situation, whether that means Zozulya plays at Rayo or somewhere else. But among all the chaos, what was most striking was Toño's recent interview, where he said something very simple but very important. "We must also consider that if he comes we will have to accept it in the best possible way and if he can contribute by scoring goals we must treat him as part of the team, regardless of ideological thoughts." If the left loves one thing, it is the idea of free speech and safe spaces where anyone can...

Raúl Martín Presa just confirmed that the 17 fans, who Tebas had filed criminal complaints against (yes, this is the Zozulya case), will be expelled if found in the stadium. Nice work. Also, Marca, being typically and idiosyncratically Marca, released a dossier entitled Tracing Míchel's Rayo with "predictions" and interviews. The gist? Míchel worked under Paco, so Míchel's Rayo will play like Paco's Rayo. Finally, we must applaud courage when it is displayed. And today it was displayed by a Casanova - Gerard Nus Casanova. The assistant technical director for Rayo is also the assistant manager of the Ghana national football team, and because none of the technical staff (bar manager Avram Grant) have been paid even though AFCON finished weeks ago, he is refusing to leave Accra until everyone gets paid. "Like any human being, when you do work you want to get paid - I don't think there's anything strange in that. I'm just going to wait here un...

Rubén Baraja has been sacked. Surprise. This has insane parallels to the 2003-04 season, where Rayo were relegated from La Liga the season before and ended up being relegated again. Then, and now, Rayo were in 16th place after 26 games, but then it was 31 points compared to 28 now. Then, Julen Lopetegui (sacked 2nd November), Jorge D'Alessandro (sacked 15th February) and Txetxu Rojo were unable to save Rayo from a second successive relegation. Now, José Ramón Sandoval (sacked 6th November), Rubén Baraja (sacked 20th February) and whoever comes in now (rumoured to be Rayo legend Míchel) might be unable to save Rayo from the same fate. All signs point in that direction though... It's funny how history seems to repeat itself. In other news, a bit of politics - Alberto Garzón, the leader of Izquierda Unida (United Left, a coalition of left-wing political parties), came to Vallekas to show support for the 10 fans who are being shoved with criminal com...