Castilla’s Season After Ten Games

Real Madrid Castilla and the academy have become a forgotten project in recent times, abandoned in favour for more attractive, pricier talents from around the globe that can be injected straight into the first team. Whilst this method has earnt the club achievements in the form of results and trophies, it has drifted away from the successful pathway which countless homegrown players have progressed through to make a huge impact on the first team (albeit after a successful loan spell elsewhere for many), and has left the youth set-up in disarray. The funding, scouting and general attention has plummeted year after year, and this season could see Castilla suffer the ultimate consequence of this neglect. They currently sit 19th out of the 20 teams in the league ‘group,’ and are joint on points with the worst placed side, with only one goal difference keeping them from the bottom. Join me as we analyse the season so far and attempt to unearth the vast number of issues with the team, whilst identifying some potential solutions.

In the summer, I outlined every step required to enhance the standard of the squad and attempt to revive the project. In summary, the answer was a new and exciting coach (as Raúl had achieved everything he needed to), and a mix of the best players that La Fábrica had left (Jesús Fortea, Joan Martínez etc.), and increased investment in external talents. None of this happened, leaving Castilla with the weakest squad possible, and no new signings. This led to the members of CastillaCorner predicting nothing short of relegation for the team. Castilla are now ten games into the Primera Federación group two campaign now, and in this ten games we have learnt everything we need to know about this squad of players, excluding one. This is certainly the worst Castilla team I have ever witnessed, by a distant margin, but how bad are they? Well, statistically, after winning one game, drawing five and losing four, this is the worst start to a league campaign since 2013/14. This doesn’t seem so bad, but the 2013/14 squad were actually competing in the second division, the pinnacle of reserve football in Spain. The squad was stacked with talent, and whilst they would go on to get relegated to the third division, they would win plenty of games throughout the season against some big clubs. When it comes to third division football, this season is the worst on record after ten games. To the majority of fans, only one man is to blame…

I remain unsure of what or who established the ongoing manhunt, but Raúl González’s stock as a manager has never been lower. The coach completed an exemplary stint in the academy, thriving with every team he oversaw, and lifting the only UEFA Youth League in Real Madrid history. He then came into Castilla, and completed four out of five successful season’s with the reserve side. He made two (should have been three but for COVID-19), play-offs, and led a below average squad to a mid-table finish last season. The only reason there was no relegation battle last year is because of the tactical adjustments Raúl made (a back five and condensed midfield). He has proven that he can get the job done with any type of squad, and has been one of the best managers I have seen at Castilla – but this season will prove a challenge to big for him. Six seasons with Castilla is excessive, and after being linked with multiple top league clubs, he is still here. This showcases a severe lack of ambition, and his misguided decisions have indeed significantly affected his stock as a manager. I do believe his time was up two years ago, and he should have flown the nest, and that everything since then has just been wasted time. However, to pretend even for one second that Raúl is to blame for the current state of affairs at Castilla is simply incorrect.

Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images

Let’s take a look at the squad… This is just the second year on record that no external signings were added to a Castilla squad during the summer, with the first being last year. This has left the squad with no experience, and with the declining quality coming up through La Fábrica – the squad has become a mess. The goalkeepers are amongst the more promising players in the team, with all three easily achieving third division standard. The defence is where things start to get messy. Youssef Enríquez has adapted well to senior football and looks promising, but despite being the best defender so far – even he is a large step down in quality in comparison to previous Castilla left-backs. Raúl Asencio, Kike Ribes, David Cuenca, David Jiménez are amongst the worst defenders I have seen play for Castilla, and they will all struggle to maintain third division status after their time at the club. Despite possessing talent, Edgar Pujol and Jacobo Ramon Ramón are yet to impress in senior football, despite the latter being somewhat rated by sections of the fanbase. Manuel Ángel and Gonzalo García represent the final glimpses of the quality of old, and whilst I like Loren Zúñiga; one goal in 57 professional games isn’t exactly what Castilla need to save themselves… It’s been almost a year, yet nobody has seen Jeremy de León play despite looking initially promising (which is indeed the fault of Raul)… Víctor Muñoz is the very definition of a pace merchant with little end product, and the better players appear to be out injured for most of the season. Chema Andrés has been a beacon of hope though, who never shies away, constantly looks to progress the ball and seems to consistently shine even when his teammates are unable to. With the joint top-scorers only managing two goals, who on the planet saves Castilla this season?

Even for the most uninformed and naïve of Raul’s critics, there is not a a manager alive who could squeeze goals out of these attackers, or keep them out at the other end. That spells disaster. Raúl has tried his best this season, and in fairness, Castilla haven’t looked much worse than their opponents at any point this season – but they have never looked better. At this point, it doesn’t matter who the manager is – and whilst Raúl should be on his way for his own sake, under-19s manager Álvaro Arbeloa would merely be more of the same after refusing to take risks despite being snubbed for the Castilla job for some time now. Despite being a decent coach himself, his academy record is mixed, and the majority of the players to come through his Juvenil A have failed to meet the standard required for Castilla. As with Raul, this is not Arbeloa’s fault at all, as the clubs neglect of its youth structure has diminished the standards. Still, a new and exciting manager coming from the outside world with a fresh take would be Castilla’s best bet when it comes to coaching. As previously mentioned, no manager on his own is going to save Castilla – so a substantial injection of funds in January to find the right players could be Castilla’s only hope.

Currently 19th, and with a squad that if not changed in January, will not pick up enough points to survive – if Castilla were relegated, then this would confirm this group as one of the worst Castilla teams of all time. The last time Castilla were down in the fourth division was in 1946… Dropping down to that level would be one last nail in the La Fábrica coffin, deterring young players from joining the set up and leaving a standard gap between the academy, reserves and the Real Madrid first team that would be too large for any player to jump. In a world where academy talents are already being sold or snubbed, relegation would cause damage that could take years, or even decades to reverse. Not only that, but the third team known as Real Madrid ‘C’ would also be relegated no matter where they finish in the fourth tier, as the two sides cannot compete in the same division. This may be a ‘banter era’ for the youth structure at Real Madrid, but will Florentino Pérez genuinely allow the club to lose such a colossal resource, that Los Blancos have benefitted from so much over the course of their history? I will leave you with a blast from the past, as the video above showcases the best goals from one of the best Castilla sides of all time. None of these current players would even make the bench for that side… Will Castilla really be relegated? Only time will tell.