Not a run of form — an actual step up, held for months. At 21 he is doing things at this level he could not do at the start of the season, and the coaching staff will tell you exactly which of them.
Tomy Carbonell and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and Real Sociedad B will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.
Gorka Gorosabel had done his part in building a 2-goal cushion. What happened after that was collective, and Almería were allowed back into a match that had been finished with.
The hardest thing about being 20 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Gorka Gorosabel did not need any: 7.75, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
Not a run of form — an actual step up, held for months. At 19 he is doing things at this level he could not do at the start of the season, and the coaching staff will tell you exactly which of them.
Squad5 Oct 2026
Álex Marchal falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Unax Agote and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and Real Sociedad B will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.
“There are things I liked and things we will be doing on Tuesday until they are right.” 2‑2, and a manager who had already decided what Tuesday looked like.
Dani Díaz and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Luken Beitia and Real Sociedad B agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Álex Marchal. 2‑1 against Córdoba, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 20-year-old it feels ownership of. Dani Díaz has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
Córdoba held the lead for 2 minutes, which is not long enough to enjoy it. Real Sociedad B answered before the celebration had properly finished, and the shape of the afternoon changed with it.
The dugout21 Sep 2026
The manager has not finished forgetting Jon Balda's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
Álex Marchal falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Minute 90, against Andorra, and a goal that felt like a win to everybody who had stayed. It was a draw. Nobody leaving the ground will describe it as one.
“A point is a point and I will take it, but we should have had all three.” Jaime Montes after the 1‑1 draw, and the sentence every manager in the country said at some stage this weekend.
Successful dribbles: 12. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
The manager wanted a different profile for this opponent, which is a real football reason and no consolation. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.