Win over Numancia; Santander Up Next

By: Jeremy | September 26th, 2008

These midweek fixtures make it hard for you to get too excited and relish in a victory because three days later you are on the road against another tough La Liga team.

First things first. We beat Numancia at home 2-0 on Thursday in what was really a must win game to give the team the confidence needed when it comes to feeling like the talent is there to get away from the relegation battle and maybe surprise in its final position. Manzano is still tinkering with his lineup and it is clear he will likely be shuffling players in and out all season depending on what he sees in each game. This week its hard to analyze his coaching decisions because you are going to likely rest players and field two lineups with two games so close together.

It was good to see Jurado flash the talent he has as he made a nice goal in minute 12. Soon after halftime Webo got on the board in minute 50 with a nice finish and the final score should have been 3-0 if Keita would have finished his easy chance in stoppage time. All in all a workmanlike victory. Numancia clearly has talent, but they had trouble generating chances and couldnt get any goals. Manzano did not seem happy with the performance of his team but understood a win was important so he will continue to tinker for the next match.

Our opponent this weekend is also off to a bit of a rough start as they sit in the relegation zone after 4 weeks with two points. Obviously it is very early, but not the kind of start you expect from a team that qualified for the UEFA Cup with their outstanding finish last year.

Games like these are tough to predict because the turnaround from the last game is so quick. Will the coaches bring back players who played midweek and see them underperform or will be put in fresh players who he wouldnt normally start. I think Manzano was trying to give some new players some time against Numancia to not only see them in game action, but to keep some players rested for the weekend. It was great to see Callejon play and even though he was pulled at halftime, I think he has some promise. I would expect Trejo to see more action this weekend and he could be the difference.

Racing is still trying to get going and should see this weekend as a chance to get points. They are at home and see Mallorca as a mid to lower level club that they should have success against. If they play like last year, with all the players Mallorca lost, they should eek out a victory. However their bad start combined with the confidence Mallorca has to be feeling is not going to make this an easy match. A win for either side does wonders but I think things will seem pretty even.

Prediction

Racing Santander 1-1 Mallorca