Football Season Guide

Cadiz managed to avoid relegation on the final day of last season, winning 1-0 away at already-relegated Alaves. That was a little too close for comfort, but they’ll just be glad to have survived given how poorly they started the season. They began under long-time coach Alvaro Cervera, who was playing ultra defensive football that just wasn’t working. The difficult decision to sack the beloved coach ended up paying off, as new boss Sergio Gonzalez installed a more balanced 4-4-2 system. Now, with Sergio Gonzalez in charge from the start of the season, Cadiz should be a more well-drilled team for the whole of the 2022/23 season. In terms of their squad, the level of quality is about the same as last year. There have been a lot of ins and outs at the club, but most of the arrivals have simply been replacements for those who have left. For example, Joseba Zaldua was brought in to take Carlos Akapo’s right-back spot. Or, Awer Mabil is joining to replace winger Oussama Idrissi, whose loan has ended. So, the big benefit for Cadiz this year is that they should be more balanced and better organised than they were at the start of last season. But, their squad is still of a limited quality, given their budget, and they’ll likely be fighting down near the bottom again.