THE QUEST FOR THE COPA

14 Jan 2006 -- Deportivo will meet Valencia in the quarterfinals of Copa del Rey, a tough confrontation that will be decided during the next 15 days. The first-leg will occur on the next Thursday at Riazor. Meanwhile, the reactions of the squad have been positive after knowing that the club is trying to organise the final in order to celebrate the centenario of Deportivo.

The most equal series of the quarterfinals will be the one between Deportivo and Valencia. Both clubs are occupying Champions League spots at this point and they are facing the sweetest moment of the season with their positive results. The team coached by Quique Sánchéz Flores has a mark of nine matches without defeats, included the two victories against Villarreal in the previous round of the copa
The first leg-match will occur next Thursday (January 19th- 22h00) at Riazor, and the second-leg will take place one week later in Mestalla (January 25th). The other three series in quarterfinal are: Betis Vs. Real Madrid, Cádiz Vs. Espanyol and Barcelona Vs. the winner of the series between Zaragoza and Atlético Madrid.

HAPPINESS FOR THE PETITION OF HOSTING THE FINAL On Wednesday Canaldeportivo.com confirmed that the club has presented the petition in order to host the final of Copa del Rey. The decision must be taken by the Spanish federation in the next weeks. The date of April 12th has been fixed as the day of the final.

The petition of the club has been received with open hands by the players. Sergio remembered the two finals that he played in this competition: "I have a special feeling for this tournament, it means a lot since I played two finals (one with Deportivo and the other with Espanyol). I hope that we will be able to repeat the experience. To host the final will be a great reward for the history of this team."
Pedro Munitis who was a Real Madrid's player during the Centenariazo believes that the petition is a good idea. He also said that the pressure won't affect the squad: "I know that this club is very wise and these things won't affect our team. It will be very important and pretty for Deportivo." Captain Scaloni also believes that his squad won't be affected with the pressure: "I don't care if they are talking about the Centenariazo. It's always better to play at home."

One of the worries is that the Spanish federation chairman, Angel María Villar will take revenge against Deportivo since the Galicinas voted for the option of Gerardo González in the last elections. The club's officials will try to use the diplomacy in order to minimize the differences with Villar, an important fact if they want to be chosen as the host of the final.

The positive fact is that the mayor of La Coruña's city, Francisco Vázquez has given his support to the petition made by Lendoiro. The official also said that the city council will present a proposal in order to give a golden medal to the club for their 100th anniversary. It must be remembered that Vázquez and Lendoiro maintains an old dispute since both ex-friends fought for the mayor's elections in the past.

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REVIEW: DEPORTIVO 0 - ALAVES 2 (LA LIGA)
 
16 Jan 2006 -- Deportivo continues to miss the light at home, this time it was last place Alavés who collected the points at Riazor thanks to two defensive distractions. The Galician club suffered the absences of Munitis, Capdevila, Duscher, Andrade and Valerón. The worst thing is that Depor lost the fourth place in the table thanks to Real Madrid's victory.

BEFORE TO THE GAME The confirmed absences of Andrade, Capdevila and Munitis were joined by the last minute-injury of Duscher and also by the absence of Valerón, who was resting for the copa match with Valencia. Caparrós decided to prove an offensive formation with Arizmendi on the left wing, Víctor on the right, Tristán as the striker and Rubén trying to generate football behind him. Meanwhile, Alavés's new coach Oliva betted on the counterattacks presenting Bodipo and Aloisi as his offensive weapons.

FIRST HALF Duscher suffered a last minute-injury and for that reason Scaloni started in midfield joining Sergio on the defensive tasks. Deportivo tried from the beginning to dominate the actions, but the solid defensive line of Alavés closed all the spaces and although the presence of three strikers (Tristán, Arizmendi and Rubén), the Galicians never seemed to create danger to the Basque squad.
Meanwhile, Jandro and the quick movements of Aloisi, Nene and Bodipo demonstrated the insecurities of Depor's defensive line, problems increased with the absence of Andrade in the squad. As a result of this situation the first goal of the evening arrived. Jandro sent a long cross to the box, Aloisi came from behind just to head the ball to the lower-corner.
The goal affected the morale of Deportivo and despite of the ball possession they couldn't generate real danger, the only good combination of the Galicians ended with Rubén Castro diving in Alavés' area. But the referee was in a good position and the game continued.

SECOND HALF Caparrós recognised his error and for that reason he sent Valerón and Iago from the beginning. Rubén Castro and Víctor had an unfortunate night and the changes tried to awaken the squad. But Alavés killed the game in their first counterattack of the second half.
Another long ball to the area was the beginning of the end for Depor, this time Aloisi sent the ball to Bodipo who gave his squad a 2-0 advantage. Then, Caparrós decided to trust in Xisco, he replaced Tristán who once again heard whistles at Riazor. The good news of the night was Iago's performance, the Fabril's youngster demonstrated positive things on the pitch, but it wasn't enough for Depor.
Deportivo continued to insist, but their effort didn't find reward. As it happened in the first half the most clear chance for the Galicians was a possible penalty, this time it was Arizmendi who was trying to reach the area. Esquinas Torres said that it wasn't a foul and the game continued until the end with Alavés wasting all the time possible.

AFTER THE GAME With Osasuna and Villarreal suffering defeats in their away games Deportivo had a good chance to secure the fourth place in the table, but as a result of this defeat the Galician club has been relegated to the fifth spot since Real Madrid achieved the win against Sevilla. Now Deportivo will face two more home games in the next week, the first is the copa clash with Valencia and in the next weekend Mallorca visits Riazor for la liga.

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REVIEW: DEPORTIVO 1 - VALENCIA 0 (COPA DEL REY)

20 Jan 2006 -- Deportivo achieved an important victory in copa del rey. The Galicians dominated the actions, but they weren't able to take advantage in the score until the last minutes of the match when Sergio scored from the penalty spot. Now Depor will travel next week to Valencia with a 1-0 lead in the series.

BEFORE TO THE GAME During the day it was known that Jorge Andrade was suffering an inflammation in one of his ankles. For this reason Caparrós left him out of last night squad, Coloccini replaced him and Duscher was introduced into the starting lineup. Caparrós was thinking of an unusual midfield consisting Coloccini and De Guzmán, but the unexpected injury of the Portuguese defender altered his plans.
Other novelties were the presence of Iván Carril and Arizmendi as starters. Both changes were made in order to refresh the striking zone after the last home defeat against Alavés. Meanwhile, Valencia's coach Quique Sánchez Flores left Aimar and Baraja on the bench. Mario Regueiro, Mista and David Villa were the offensive trio selected for the occasion.

FIRST HALF The strategy of both squads was evident from the beginning. Deportivo was commanding the actions and Valencia was speculating with the counterattacks. Juanma had the first clear chance of the night when he tried to head a free-kick taken by Munitis, but Mora intercepted the ball first. Three minutes later Mista responded with another headed ball that passed just inches away from the post.
Later De Guzmán sent a powerful shot from 30 meters that Mora sent out. Valencia responded with another shot that Molina deflected, Rufete's cross was received by Regueiro, but Molina cleared the danger with one hand. Valerón and Munitis were leading the offensive work of their team, but the good defensive work of the visitors obstructed their intentions. The Canarian suffered a strong hit in the face and for that reason he was off the pitch for several minutes.

Valencia was playing the game with a clear idea in their mind: not allowing any goals; however, they also searched the victory and seemed very dangerous with their counterattacks. At minute 37th Duscher saw a red card for a hard tackle against Albiol, Coloccini and Capdevila saw yellow cards for protesting the sanction.

The fact of being with one player less didn't affect the morale of the Galicians, they continued to search the goal, but Valencia's defensive line was very solid. The first half ended with the protest of the public against the referee Iturralde González, they weren't content with Duscher's red card and with several fouls against Depor that he didn't see.

SECOND HALF The game continued in the same line, although Depor was with ten men on the pitch the Galician players were pushing upfront, but the solid wall of Valencia was very hard to surpass. A series of crosses made by Iván Carril, Munitis and Capdevila were cleared out by the defenders during the first ten minutes. It seemed that the aerial game was the only choice that they had in order to conquer the desired goal.

Iván Carril left the pitch and his place was taken by Enrique Romero, meanwhile, Quique Flores responded with Pablo Aimar. The Argentinean replaced Mista in the offensive line. Caparrós’s modification wasn't successful and Depor continued to face troubles in order to reach Valencia's area. Then, the most dangerous action of the second half arrived, Francisco Molina his team saved twice, first it was a shot from Regueiro and immediately he stopped the response from Villa.

Baraja replaced Regueiro, a change that had the intention of controlling midfield, an important key in the match since Duscher wasn't on the pitch. Caparrós responded immediately sending Sergio for Valerón. Both coaches were moving every piece strategically and they didn’t want to give any advantage to the rival.

The solid defence of Valencia seemed impossible to surpass, but the big chance for Deportivo arrived in their stronger point on the current season: the strategic plays, Carboni pulled Capdevila's shirt after a corner-kick and Iturralde González allowed the polemic penalty that Sergio fulfilled. The goal was a deserved reward to the Galicians and a hard punishment for Valencia. Depor always searched the victory, a fact that happened despite facing the rival with ten men during a large part of the match.

AFTER THE GAME Deportivo will travel to Valencia with a narrow win in the pocket. The most important thing of the night is that the Galicians achieved a clean sheet, they will advance to semifinals with a draw or even with one goal defeat, but in this case they will have to score at least one goal.

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2:0 pa 2:2 protiv lose Majorke... Uz Udineze,najcudnija ekipa u Evropi ove godine,definitivno.

Njihov problem je oduvek bio nedostatak motivacije protiv slabijih ekipa... oni mogu u svako doba da pobede Real, a i da izgube od Alavesa...

REVIEW: DEPORTIVO 2 - 2 MALLORCA (LA LIGA)

22 Jan 2006 -- Deportivo only managed a draw against lowly Mallorca, after entering the halftime with a two goal advantage. Three critical minutes in the second half gave Mallorca a point and left Deportivo on the sixth place. But the biggest loss for Deportivo is Valeron, who will be out of action for a long time.

BEFORE THE MATCHCaparros decided to play it safe in the offensive and again started the match with Valeron and Tristan, while Munitis and Capdevila were returning after suspension. But the absences of Juanma and Andrade forced Caparros to use Coloccini and Romero in the central defense.

Meanwhile, Duscher's absence was covered by Julian de Guzman. The Canadian is faster and more dangerous than Scaloni, so Caparros decided to give him another opportunity to play. But the main novelty in Depor's lineup was the presence of Iago on the wing. With Ivan Carril injured and Victor in a bad form, Caparros started the match with his only other true winger, leaving Arizmendi also on the bench.
Mallorca had other problems, lying 18th in the table. Any point would be important for the insular team, and Hector Raul Cuper could also count on the new players, Nunes and Basinas, although none of them started the match in the end.

THE FIRST HALF Mallorca started the match very determined, creating pressure at Deportivo's goal. Still, they couldn't create any real danger in the beginning of the match and it was Tristan who had the first big opportunity. Only a few minutes later, Manuel Pablo found Valeron in the box with a long ball and the forward scored with a shot from the near post.
Valeron was fouled minutes later in the box and Tristan converted a penalty bringing his goal tally to ten. With the victory sliding away from Mallorca, Depor started to dominate and De Guzman almost added a third with long range shot just before the break.

THE SECOND HALF With the relegation zone just around the corner, Mallorca started the second half desperate to score. And only five minutes after the start of the second half, Okubo cut the distance in half with a controversial goal after a powerful header. To make matters worse, Mallorca started a counterattack three minutes later which Arango finished with a well placed shot that surprised Molina, levelling the score.

With both teams looking for the win, the opportunities started to appear and Munitis, Valeron and Tristan almost managed to score, while Molina was also saved by the post. Caparros reacted and sent Xisco on the pitch replacing Sergio and strengthening the attack, and minutes later he had to bring in Arizmendi to replace an injured Valeron. But even with three strikers, Depor didn't create any more danger, losing another two points at home.

AFTER THE MATCH The other contenders for the Champions League positions had a more productive matchday, with Celta, Villareal, Valencia and Sevilla all winning. These circumstances relegate Depor to the sixth place, level on points with Celta and three points away from the fourth spot.

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VALERON WILL MISS THE REST OF THE SEASON
 

24 Jan 2006 -- The worst expectations were confirmed, Juan Carlos Valerón will miss the rest of the season as well as the World Cup after suffering a ligament injury during the 2-2 draw with Mallorca on Sunday. The bad news is creating a lot of worries in the fans and specially in the coach Joaquín Caparrós.

The incident happened during the last minutes of the liga match when Valerón fell down to the grass in pain, nobody was guilty since the player turner his left knee improperly in order to search the ball, the diagnosis revealed that the 30-years-old midfielder has a rupture in the anterior ligaments of his knee. Surgery will be required and Valerón will have to face a minimum of six months' recuperation.

Doctor César Cobián knew that the injury was serious, a fact that he commented when he was leaving the pitch after the game with Mallorca: "It doesn't seems well, but we will have to wait." Later his worries were confirmed. For the moment the surgery won't take place until Friday since the doctors will wait until the inflammation in his knee is over.

The process of recuperation will be delicate, after the surgery the Canarian player will follow a tough re-adaptation process; however, Valerón is hopeful and he even had some words of support for the rest of the squad: "I'm animated and I am asking for the support of the people, now is when we need to be with our team." The player was taken to the Hospital Modelo in La Coruña where Luci- Caparrós' assistant- and Javier Reyes- Depor's physical trainer- visited the player. President Lendoiro phoned him during the night in order to give him the support of the club.

Meanwhile Joaquín Caparrós is thinking in who should replace the most talent player in his squad, the Sevillan trainer appointed some of the possible solutions: "We will try not to notice his absence, but it will be tough. For the moment we will search for his replacement here or even in Deportivo B, the team will not step down and we will continue in our fight."

It's speculated that Caparrós could allow the return of Momo to the squad, the Canarian youngster was ruled out of the team in order to open a space for Arizmendi, but now he could finally have a place in the most unexpected situation. Other solution speculated in the media are the combination of three pivotes in the line-up, a fact that Javier Irureta proved before.

Another option that Caparrós has is to find a replacement outside of the club, a possibility that he is also thinking, as he appointed: "We have time, without the hurries of doing it before January 31st. It will be difficult to find a player with the same profile. We will oversee the market and if is possible we could sign a player that will help us on that position, but we must do it with patience."

Although the winter market will be closed on the following Tuesday, Depor does not need to be hurry, la liga allows a club to inscribe a player in order to replace another one that has suffered a serious injury, a situation that could happen in every moment of the season without the necessity of having an open market. The only condition is that the player injured must be ruled out for the rest of the season.
It seems early to guess what Caparrós will do, it's probable as he appointed out that several proves will be made, the Sevillan coach will try to find a new strategy for his team with his current players, if he isn't satisfy he will ask for a new player to Lendoiro. A decision that he has to make within in the next days since the club is fighting in two fronts: la copa and for a European place in la liga.

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REVIEW: VALENCIA-DEPORTIVO: SUSPENDED (COPA)

26 Jan 2006 -- Quique Sánches Flores predicted a hard match against Deportivo... and he was right. The fans in the Mestalla were furious with a red card given to Marchena at the beginning of the game and just when Valencia equalized, an object hit one of the assistants and the game was suspended.

BEFORE THE MATCH Caparrós’ defensive strategy was confirmed, as he sent Andrade and Juanma to perform as central defenders, while Coloccini joined Duscher in midfield. Munitis covered the left wing and Scaloni played on the right. Arizmendi was the striker and Sergio had the responsibility of replacing Valerón.

Valencia presented an offensive formation with Pablo Aimar as the leader. Villa and Regueiro completed their striking force. Depor's players wore shirts with the slogan 'Animo Valerón' on them when they entered the pitch.

FIRST HALF Valencia started the game with strength. They were trying to equalize the second leg as soon as possible, and their first corner was cleared by Molina after the first minute with some difficulty. However, Deportivo demonstrated that no matter what the first leg result was their intention was to search for a new victory in this game. A series of corner kicks ended with Coloccini heading the ball on goal, but Butelle sent it out for a new corner kick.

Later, a 30 metre shot from Capdevila hit the post in what was Depor’s clearest chance to score. The Valencians started to lose their nerves and the first one to fall was Marchena. The defender slammed Arizmendi with his elbow and referee Megía Dávila sent him off just nine minutes after the game began. The crowd protested heavily at the Mestalla and Valencia's players continued to lose patience.
As a result, Baraja fouled Munitis in a dangerous position and Sergio's free kick passed just inches away from the right post, but it was clear that the game was following Depor's strategy since Valencia was lacking self-control and discipline. But the home side started to calm down and the first warning was a combination between Baraja and Villa that Munitis cleared for a corner kick.
Just when it seemed that the first half would end scoreless, David Villa appeared. The Asturian striker was very active during the night and didn't miss this chance to score the goal that equalized the eliminatory. But the goal wasn't enough for some fans in the Mestalla, and an object was thrown on the pitch and hit one of the referee's assistants. The first half ended one minute early since he was bleeding from the head.


THE INCIDENTS Megía Dávila decided that the game should be suspended since there was no reason to continue. It’s not clear what will happen now. The authorities will decide later today what to do. What's clear is that Valencia will be handed a strong financial penalty at the Mestalla. There are two things that can happen regarding the match. The first is to definitely suspend the game and allow Deportivo into the semifinals with a 3-0 victory.

The other solution is to play the second half in an empty Mestalla at a date to be announced. For the moment, Depor’s squad has returned to la Coruña in order to prepare for Saturday's game against Atlético Madrid. Depor's officials expressed that no matter what the authorities decide they will follow the instructions of the Spanish federation.

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UNCERTAINTY IN THE COPA

28 Jan 2006 -- The Spanish federation determined that the second-leg game between Valencia and Deportivo must be played behind close doors this Wednesday in Mestalla; however, Deportivo's officials believes that the match shouldn't be played and in the worst the case, it must be restarted in a neutral stadium.

On Friday morning the Spanish Federation (RFEF) determined that the 46 minutes left in the game Valencia-Deportivo must be restarted on February 1st at the Mestalla. The date of this match should be established in an agreement between both clubs, but since Depor didn't want to do it the RFEF took that decision. The game would be played behind close doors and both squads could use any player available at the moment of the suspension.

The only condition is that Valencia must start with ten men since Marchena saw a red card during the game, his punch in the face of Arizmendi will also cost him a suspension of three games, a sanction that was established yesterday by the Competition Committee.
But Depor's lawyers believes that the squad doesn't need to fulfil the game since they understand that the sanction of the RFEF is only harming the Galician club. In a press conference Depor's president, Augusto César Lendoiro announced the position of the club. For him the RFEF isn't the right instance to handle this case, he affirmed that the Supreme Sporting Council (CSD) has signed an international agreement in 1985 that searches the eradication of the violence in all sports.

According to Lendoiro the violence generated at Mestalla against the referees was the result of the 'violent language' of the Valencia's coach (Quique Sánchez Flores), the president (Juan Soler) and some of the local players. Depor's president says that the international agreement signed by the CSD specifies strong sanctions to the clubs that causes violent acts, as example he explained that the UEFA used this criteria in order to punish AS Roma for a similar problem in the Champions League match against Dinamo Kiev.

What Deportivo is asking to the CSD is to invalidate the RFEF determination of restarting the game since they understand that Valencia should be punished with the lose of the match, the same sanction that AS Roma received in the example presented by Lendoiro. In any case the worst thing is to restart the game since the minute 44th, but it must happen in a neutral stadium.

The petition made by Deportivo hasn't been answered yet by the CSD. A respond is awaited in the following hours or even days, but for the moment the copa eliminatory against Valencia continues to navigate in uncertain waters.

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REVIEW: ATLETICO MADRID 3 - DEPORTIVO 2

29 Jan 2006 -- Deportivo couldn't continue with his good rally of results as visitors, the defeat in Madrid also means that the Galicians have lost the European place that they were occupying during the last weeks. Caparrós' starting line-up didn't work in the first half, but the entrance of Rubén and Arizmendi changed the things in the second half. But a goal scored by Maxi 10 minutes before to the end decided the winner of the confrontation.

BEFORE TO THE MATCH As was expected Caparrós sent Héctor as right winger while Munitis continued in the left, the surprise was the continuity of Sergio as second striker, it was expected the presence of Arizmendi in that position. Atlético started the actions with a offensive formation that included the presence of Maxi Rodríguez, Ibagaza, Petrov, Fernando Torres and Kezman.

FIRST HALF The temperature was very low at Madrid and both teams seemed to be affected by the environment, Depor and Atlético didn't generate occasion during the first twenty minutes and the absence of control in midfield was the thing that prevailed. In Deportivo the connection between Sergio and the wingers (Héctor and Munitis) was inexistent, while in Atlético Ibagaza had troubles to surpass Duscher.
But the things changed at minute 34th when the home side scored the first goal, a cross from the left was received by Petrov, the Bulgarian international sent the ball to the opposite corner allowing Maxi Rodríguez to make a shot that Juanma couldn't stop in the goal line.

Atlético found the enthusiasm that they were needing and the squad continued to search for more, Deportivo didn't show any reaction and the connection between the midfielders and the strikers continued to be broken, it seemed that the Galicians were more concern about not allowing more goals than for searching the equaliser.

SECOND HALF Caparrós knew that his team wasn't working and he made two modifications, he introduced Rubén Castro and Arizmendi in the places of Sergio and Tristán. The changes worked and just two minutes after the restart Rubén scored in a free-kick. The Canarian sent his shot to the box, but since nobody could touch the ball goalkeeper Leo Franco couldn't react at time in order to deflect the ball.
The goal changed the dynamic of the game, now both squad were trying to achieve the victory, a thing unseen in the first half. Atlético reacted to Rubén's goal and eight minutes later Antonio López broke the tie with an unstoppable free-kick that Molina could only saw entering to the net.

But this time Deportivo reacted well to the goal, five minutes later Capdevila scored the second equaliser of the night in a corner-kick. Munitis' cross was headed by Rubén in the near post and Capdevila, who was unmarked threw himself to the grass planting a header into the bottom corner.

It seemed that Depor could achieve at least a point on this match, but ten minutes before to the end Maxi Rodríguez appeared once again, Petrov sent a new cross from the left and the Argentinean player made a small touch that deflected the ball over the head of Molina. Deportivo couldn't react and the defeat was consume despite of the entrance of Xisco and the presence of Molina in Atlético's area during the last corner-kick of night.

It's the third consecutive liga game for Depor without achieving a victory, a rally that has throw them out of the European spots. Now the Galicians will have to face Valencia twice during the next seven days. First for the copa and on the next Saturday for la liga.

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