The Rayo Vallecano Chronicle
Squad23 Aug 2027
120 days out for Alemão after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Rayo Vallecano will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Transfer targets23 Aug 2027
Rayo Vallecano make their move for Manfred Ugalde
$28.6M on the table at Norwich City. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
Squad23 Aug 2027
Augusto Batalla keeps Rayo Vallecano in it on his own
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Boardroom23 Aug 2027
Graduation day at Rayo Vallecano
5 boys move up, and somewhere in the building the people who coached them at twelve are quietly having the best morning of their working year. Nothing about this shows up in a result and it is why the academy exists.
Market23 Aug 2027
Rayo Vallecano promote Andrés Sánchez from within
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Andrés Sánchez has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Market23 Aug 2027
One of our own: Aimar Santos joins the Rayo Vallecano first team
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Aimar Santos is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
Market23 Aug 2027
Rayo Vallecano promote Luken Vera from within
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Luken Vera has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Market23 Aug 2027
One of our own: Pol Ruiz joins the Rayo Vallecano first team
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Pol Ruiz is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
Squad23 Aug 2027
Tempers go at Rayo Vallecano
Raúl De Tomás was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
In brief
- Boardroom A promise the Rayo Vallecano board did not keep
- Squad Rayo Vallecano are still strangers to each other
- The dugout When it matters, Florian Lejeune plays