Real Sociedad manager Imanol Alguacil has qualified the Txuri-Urdin for Europe in every full season he has taken charge of, but that record looks under threat after a poor start to the La Liga season. With a game more played than the four sides below them, La Real are just a point above the drop zone.
In their seven games that they have played, La Real have just three goals and one win so far, and of their opponents, only Real Madrid finished in the top half of the table last season. Real Sociedad go into their next clash against OGC Nice in the Europa League with a very real chance of being in the relegation zone when they return to domestic action.
However Sporting Director Roberto Olabe has come out in stout defence of manager Alguacil.
“There is no one better than him to carry out this job. He conveys calm. I don’t get the feeling that it’s posturing. He is very focused on what we need. I’m not going to tell you that we are calm. We are set on trying to get results, but the results will come after finding our identity, the performance of the players,” Olabe told Relevo.
Few managers have as much credit in the bank as Alguacil, and Olabe emphasized that they needed to remain calm, and face the situation with personality. The lack of goals has also been a concern, but Olabe felt there were sufficient weapons in the side to break other teams down.
Olabe himself has come under questioning too, with Orri Oskarsson and Nayef Aguerd arriving very late in the transfer window.
“It hasn’t been a last minute job or something on the fly. There has been a lot of work behind a lot of people. That work must be converted into performance. The decision-making is not always the same and it is not always in your power to manage one way or another. We have a responsibility. We haven’t looked to make any sales. And they have occurred in a certain time, which has not been when we would have liked,” Olabe noted, no doubt referencing the late exit of Mikel Merino to Arsenal.
Olabe also noted that they would be handing Sheraldo Becker stepping out of line internally too, and that the matter was closed. Becker was involved in a fight outside of a nightclub in Donostia-San Sebastian late on Saturday night, and apologised publicly on social media. The club are evaluating whether to take any disciplinary action, but Becker is willing to accept whatever punishment befalls him.
After Nice, things do not get much easier for Real Sociedad, with Valencia, Anderlecht, Atletico Madrid and Girona all on the way. La Real will be desperate for a response sooner rather than later.
