Entrevista que me realizó Gerry Jonhtson para su blog personal https://thecurvaespana.wordpress.com acerca de lo que le espera al Levante la próxima temporada:
Head Coach
Lucas Alcaraz
Stadium
Ciutat de Valencia
2014/15
14th in La Liga
Transfers In
Deyverson (Belenenses)
Angel Trujillo (Almeria)
Ruben (Almeria)
Verza (Almeria)
Zouhair Feddal (Parma)
Nabil Ghilas (FC Porto) – Loan
Transfers Out
Mohamed Sissoko (Shenhua)
Andreas Ivanschitz (Seattle Sounders)
Ivan Ramis (Eibar)
David Barral (Al-Dhafra)
Papakouli Diop (Unattached)
Kalu Uche (Unattached)
Loukas Vyntra (Hapoel Tel-Aviv)
The View From The Curva
The Curva Espana spoke to Levante fan @mariavigar96, who has a sports blog (in Spanish) that can be found here http://mariavillanuevalud.blogspot.com.es/, about the season ahead. Here is what she had to say.
The Curva Espana – How long have you been a fan of Levante and what made you support them in the first place?
@mariavigar96 – I have loved football since I can remember but I have supported Levante since I was ten. My family supported Valencia CF and when I was little I did too. One day I went to the Ciutat de Valencia (Levante’s Stadium) and I fell in love with a humble team with great values who were playing in the Segunda. From that moment I have not missed a match and hope I never miss one.
TCE – Levante have been in La Liga for six successive seasons now. What is required to get back to the success of 2011/12 when they finished 6th?
@mariavigar96 – Playing six consecutive seasons is a great success but as you say, the best season was in 2011-12. Firstly having players who play for the colours and are team leaders like were Ballesteros, Nano or Iborra. Secondly having a good forward like Kone who with his goals made Levante qualified for the Europa League. Since then Levante hasn’t had a complete goal scorer like him. Finally, that year there was a union between the fans and the players. One year before the fans of Levante were named the best fans of Spain, and they were motivated to support the team from the beginning of the season.
TCE – How big is the derby match with Valencia?
@mariavigar96 – It’s the biggest game of the season for the “granotas”. Both want to be the best team in the city and although Valencia has more money and better players, Levante has lost only two of the last seven games. Players don‘t play alone, also the fans are very supportive and sings songs for the Levant and sometimes against Valencia. There is a great rivalry.
TCE – What are your thoughts on this summer’s transfer activity, both in and out?
@mariavigar96 – This summer has been a big problem in Levante, the club was not sold but could have been when the American banker, Robert Sarver offered €56 million to buy it, and that created a lot of uncertainty which has only served to restrict the club to four transfers: Rubén, Verza, Ghilas and Deyverson. In opinion all four are good signings for the future, but the truth is we lost better players, like Mariño, Sissoko or Vyntra. To reach a good level Levante needs: two defenders urgently, a fast winger and a midfield player to complete the team. The team could also lose a forward, a goalkeeper and an attacking player like Xumetra or El Zhar.
TCE – If you could make one realistic signing for Levante this summer who would it be?
@mariavigar96 – One of the most motivating signings for the fans was Bryan Ruiz. Levante announced an agreement with him. That would have been a great signing of high quality but it fell through. He was a realistic signing and would have brought a lot of quality to Levante, but he has signed for Sporting Lisbon which is bad news for us.
TCE – What is the target for this season?
@mariavigar96 – Like every season, it is to stay in La Liga. I think this year will be very complicated. All the other teams have signed good players and Levante haven’t strengthened. There is still time though and I hope that one player who excites the fans comes in.
Player to Watch
Victor Camarasa – Camarasa spent much of his youth career with city rivals Valencia but he was released at 17 years old and eventually made the move to Levante after a year in the lower leagues. He made his debut for Levante’s B team in the 2012/13 season before making his senior debut in 2013. He became a regular in the first team in the second half of last season and showed a lot of promise in midfield and if he can continue to progress he could be an important player for Levante.
Summary
This will be a difficult season for Levante and it is likely that they will be one of the clubs who spend the season in a relegation battle. They have lost some important players in the summer although they have made some good signings with Nabil Ghilas in particular standing out. Ghilas scored seven goals for Cordoba last season as the Andalusians were relegated. If Ghilas can push that tally towards double figures he could make a big difference to Levante’s hopes of survival.
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