Football Season Guide

Last season was one of the best in Osasuna’s recent history, as they finished runners-up in the Copa del Rey and also came seventh in the league to earn a Conference League ticket, returning to Europe for the first time in 17 years. The patience the club have placed in coach Jagoba Arrasate, who has been in charge since 2018, has paid off, as he knows every detail at the club and is able to bring through youth at the same time as trusting veterans and loanees. This off-season has been a strange one at the club, as they first had to appeal to UEFA to ensure their European qualification could be confirmed. That uncertainty may have put their transfer planning back a few weeks. They’ll also need to beef up the squad, because it’s one of the older squads and there simply isn’t enough depth to add in midweek European football, and also the Spanish Super Cup in January, which they’ll play in. That task hasn’t been completed yet, and Osasuna even lost some key loan players like Abde Ezzalzouli and Manu Sanchez. They absolutely still need a few signings. If and when Osasuna do bring in a few new bodies, they should be fine as they have a great coach in Arrasate and they have great LaLiga players throughout their spine, from the goalkeeping position all the way through to attack, even if they did only score 37 goals, the fifth-lowest in LaLiga, last season. Their main weakness could be fatigue, something they already struggled with when they went on their deep Copa del Rey run last season. Playing the Conference League and Spanish Super Cup will be fun, but it could hurt their league position.