Football Season Guide

Levante

In


Enric Franquesa (def) Villarreal; Roberto Soldado (att) Granada; Roger Brugué (mid) Gimnastic; Hernani (att) Al-Wahda – end of loan; Koke Vegas (gk) RCD Mallorca – end of loan; Pablo Martínez (mid) Mirandes – end of loan; Pepelu (mid) Vitória Guimarães – end of loan

Out


Toño García (sp) (def) Eibar; Cheick Doukouré (sp) (mid) Leganes; Rubén Rochina (r) (mid) Released

Levante had a solid season last year and their 14th place finish is a little misleading, since they were in the top half of the table for most of the campaign. Once they mathematically secured survival, though, their form completely dropped off as the motivation wasn’t the same. Going into a new season, Levante should be ready and they have the perfect coach in Paco Lopez, a club man who has been there for four and a half years now and who is the second-longest-serving coach currently in LaLiga, only after Diego Simeone. His Levante sides have generally been known for scoring many goals and for conceding many goals, although they weren’t quite as gung-ho in 2020/21 as in some years gone past. This team matured a lot in 2020/21 and that’s why they were able to earn some really positive results and sit in the top half for so long. This off-season has been a difficult one for Levante, with financial issues making it difficult to sign and register new players. They do seem to have worked through those issues, though, and will have a few interesting reinforcements, the highlight being veteran striker Roberto Soldado. Levante, then, have a solid squad and have one of the most stable dugouts in all of the division. They have been a mid-table team for some time and another year in mid-table purgatory would shock no one.

Target


Finishing in the top half. Levante have evolved enough in recent years, to the point where simply avoiding relegation can’t be their only objective. They were on course for a top half finish last season before a disappointing finish to the season. They should aim for the top 10 this year.