Former Dungannon Swifts and Glentoran midfielder Terry Devlin has agreed a new long-term deal with Portsmouth.

“Wow,” she says and then takes a second or two to think. “Where do I start?”

Jim Magilton has given a warm welcome to the news that a new football National Training Centre is being planned next to the Galgorm resort, just outside Ballymena.

Optimistic Irish FA chiefs Patrick Nelson and Conrad Kirkwood have insisted the new “state-of-the-art” National Training Centre (NTC) next to the Galgorm Resort just outside Ballymena will be built even though it has yet to receive funding or planning permission.

Michael O’Neill has predicted that Northern Ireland teams will move to another level once the new National Training Centre (NTC) opens.

This past weekend, Real Valladolid suffered a devastating 7-1 defeat at the hands of Athletic Club, which further laid bare their struggles in the 2024/25 La Liga season. The thrashing at San Mames was not a one-off humiliation but a stark reflection of Valladolid’s deeper issues since their return to the top flight.  

Promoted last season after a single year in the Segunda Division, Valladolid have found the step up in quality overwhelming. Despite having a larger wage bill than other La Liga clubs such as Rayo Vallecano and Leganes, their recruitment has struggled to build a squad with enough talent to compete in La Liga. This squad-building has shown up in their numbers, with Valladolid being, by a wide margin, the team with the fewest goals scored (16) and the most goals conceded (59).  

They have already sacked two managers (Paulo Pezzolano and Diego Cocca last week), and right now, youth team manager Alvaro Rubio is in charge. As of now, Valladolid look increasingly resigned to returning to the second tier, and it might be better for the club to start thinking about player and coach recruitment for their next season in Segunda . 

While Valladolid’s plight seems the most dire, the rest of La Liga’s relegation contenders still have plenty of room to avoid relegation. So let’s take a quick look at the other contenders – Espanyol, Leganes, Las Palmas, Alaves, and Valencia – and what’s working for and against them as the season progresses.

Espanyol: Improving Away from Home 

Espanyol, another of last season’s promoted sides, have shown flashes of promise that suggest they could escape the drop.  

Despite being solid enough on their home ground, Espanyol had one of the worst away records in the division, with just 2 points out of 33 in away games before this weekend. Their victory against Alaves this past Saturday was their first one of the season, and if Espanyol want to comfortably avoid relegation, they will have to get more of those. 

Their game plan under coach Manolo Gonzalez has been to maintain a very deep defensive block. According to Understat data, Espanyol allow the most passes per defensive action in the division, which implies they are the most passive defensive block in the league. One would argue this setup of deep block + counter is well-suited for away games, but it seems to have the opposite effect. Espanyol defend so deeply that they pose no attacking threat to their opponents on their home grounds.  

The other argument in Espanyol’s favor is their 23-year-old goalkeeper Joan Garcia, who has consistently bailed out an occasionally shaky Espanyol defence with highlight-reel stops. Espanyol’s recent upturn—three wins and two draws in their last six games as of late February 2025—is in no small part due to his saves. Garcia is easily the most in-form keeper among the relegation contenders, which can be the difference between going down and staying up. 

Leganes: Can Organization Compensate for a Lack of Talent?

Back in La Liga after a four-year absence, Leganes have the smallest revenue and wage bill in the competition. Based on their squad talent, it was clear from the start that Leganes would be fighting to avoid the relegation zone. Despite these constraints, Leganes have not found themselves in relegation spots at the end of any of the last 25 matchdays.  

Coach Borja Jimenez has created a team who are organized, scrappy, and hard to break down. They also have a low-to-mid defensive block and attempt to hit opponents on the counter. And unlike Espanyol, that plan has allowed them to get plenty of draws in away games and some shock wins against big opponents. This includes their defeat of Barcelona at Montjuic, their draw in San Mames against Athletic, and their defeat of Atletico Madrid at home.  

Their lack of quality in the final third is a glaring drawback. Goals have been hard to come by (third-worst attack in the league with 22 goals), and their reliance on defensive solidity leaves little margin for error. They don’t have an individual, such as a goalie or striker in great form, who can get them results in the way other relegation contenders have. Leganes will need to maintain their discipline and hope their rivals falter if they’re to secure another season in the top flight. 

Las Palmas: A Turnaround in Trouble 

After a rough start under manager Luis Carrion, it seemed as if Las Palmas were on the way to recovery under new manager Diego Martinez. Martinez was less interested in having possession and controlling games with the ball than his predecessor. And for a moment, this seemed to be exactly what they needed. From the moment Martinez took over (the game against Valencia on October 21st) until the end of the calendar year, Las Palmas had accumulated six wins, one draw, and just two losses in nine La Liga games. Even a comfortable mid-table finish was seen as possible now.  

However, it seems the new year has dissipated the effect of the new-manager bump. In 2025, Las Palmas have lost every match except for a draw at home against Osasuna. Their momentum has stalled, and their dip in form has dragged them back into danger. 

 The absence of Kirian Rodriguez has dealt a significant blow to UD Las Palmas, as the team captain announced in early February 2025 that he would step away from football indefinitely to undergo chemotherapy following a relapse of Hodgkin’s lymphoma. His leadership and midfield presence, evident in his participation in 21 of 22 La Liga matches this season before his diagnosis, have left a void that the struggling side must now navigate in their fight against relegation. The recent injury to Fabio Silva, one of their key strikers this season alongside Sandro Ramirez, hasn’t helped either.  

Despite the relatively good form of goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen as well as the strikers, the concern is that Las Palmas’ defense is still too consistently leaky and error-prone to hold out in the relegation race. Martinez will need further defensive improvements if he wants his team to survive.

Alaves: Fading Early Promise 

Deportivo Alaves burst out of the gates this season, their physicality and direct style shining under Luis Garcia Plaza. However, that wouldn’t last long.  

Plaza was sacked as head coach on the second of December, after a string of poor results (one win, one draw, and seven losses in their last nine league matches) that saw the team slide dangerously close to the La Liga relegation zone. At the time of his dismissal, Alaves sat 16th in the table, only one point above the drop zone. The club’s management, despite García Plaza never having been in the relegation places during the 2024/25 season and having recently signed a contract extension through 2026, opted for a change to “give an impulse to the team,” as stated by club president Alfonso Fernandez de Troconiz.  

Many viewed the move as harsh, given Plaza’s excellent track record. He led Alaves to promotion from the Segunda División in 2022 via the playoffs and secured a 10th-place finish in La Liga the following season. He was replaced by Eduardo “Chacho” Coudet, the former Celta Vigo manager, in a bid to turn the team’s fortunes around.

Insistimos.#MallorcaAlavés | #GoazenGlorioso pic.twitter.com/5nYeSAn2YV

— Deportivo Alavés (@Alaves) February 26, 2025

Unfortunately, Coudet has not been able to turn the fortunes around, and Alaves find themselves now in 18th spot. In Coudet’s defence, the team looks a bit stronger collectively than it did at the end of Plaza’s reign, which is reflected in their underlying numbers. Luck is not on their side, however, and they’ve had several games at home – Girona, Celta, and Espanyol – where they dominated and created enough to win the game but could not finish the job.  

And this goes back to their big issue: aside from striker Kike Garcia being in great scoring form, Alaves have no other individuals who can carry the team through this run. Antonio Sivera is an average shot-stopper, and the double pivot of Antonio Blanco and Ander Guevara is not performing as well as last year, to the point Guevara has been dropped in the last couple of games.

Valencia: The Wounded Giant

Ruben Baraja’s sacking from Valencia and the subsequent hiring of Carlos Corberan marked an intriguing shift for the club under Peter Lim’s ownership. Baraja, a Valencia legend as a player, was dismissed on the 23rd of December, after a dismal run that left the team 19th in La Liga with just two wins from 17 matches. Fans had grown restless, and the pressure on Lim, long criticised for treating the club as a business rather than a footballing institution, intensified. Baraja’s exit, costing the club a reported €5m in severance, was a reluctant but inevitable call as Valencia hovered four points from safety, with the spectre of relegation – their first since 1986 – looming large.  

Enter Corberan, a 41-year-old Valencian who’d been making waves at West Bromwich Albion in England’s Championship. His appointment, confirmed on Christmas day, with a contract until 2027, was an unusual flex for Lim’s Valencia, a club not typically associated with splashing cash on managerial changes. Valencia paid around €2.4 million to trigger Corberan’s release clause, bringing the total cost of the transition to roughly €7.4 million. What raised eyebrows even further was the choice of Corberan himself: a relatively untested coach at the elite level, yet one with a glowing reputation from stints under Marcelo Bielsa at Leeds and a playoff push with Huddersfield. His tactical acumen and adaptability offered hope, but hiring someone without top-flight experience to rescue a sinking giant was a gamble.  

And up to now, the gamble seems to be working well enough. Corberan’s Valencia are more compact and solid defensively than Baraja’s, and they have been able to grind out good results. They have defeated Real Sociedad, Celta, and Leganes at home, drawn against Sevilla and Villarreal away, and have only lost against the Spanish top three (Real Madrid, Atletico, and Barca). In other words, Corberan’s Valencia have won the games they are supposed to win (vs. lower-half teams at home) and have gotten decent results against some top-half teams. Their underlying numbers back up their results.

8 – Solo en 8 de los 57 casos en los que un equipo sumaba 13 puntos o menos tras 19 encuentros en @LaLiga (contando 3 puntos por victoria) se evitó el descenso de categoría, siendo el Zaragoza el último en conseguirlo en la campaña 2011/12. Infierno.#Valencia pic.twitter.com/5cSAXynfBt

— OptaJose (@OptaJose) January 11, 2025

Out of all the relegation contenders, Valencia seem to be in the best run of form as of the end of February. And one could argue they have the strongest, deepest squad out of the relegation contenders. If Valencia continue this run of form, they will avoid relegation, perhaps even comfortably; a lot can still happen in the next three months.  

What goes against Valencia is that goalie Giorgi Mamardashvili seems to have his head more in Liverpool than Valencia at the moment. His form this season has been a far cry from last season, where he was arguably the most decisive shot-stopper in the tournament. A good Mamardashvili would be the most important boost for Valencia’s chances in the relegation race. 

The Road Ahead 

With Valladolid almost written off, the race to avoid the remaining two relegation spots is wide open. Alaves and Valencia have, in my opinion, the most talented squads among these relegation contenders, yet they are currently in relegation spots. However, Valencia seem to have a more solid team identity now and are well positioned to get out of relegation spots.  

Meanwhile, Espanyol and Leganes might have less talent, but they have clear defensive plans that allow them to grind games out, with Espanyol getting an extra boost due to the excellent performances of Joan Garcia. Perhaps Las Palmas are the team with the most uncertainties out of these five. They don’t have a clear team identity yet, and it’s not clear the squad is talented enough to compensate for that. They are, to me, the clearest relegation candidate.  

As the season nears its crucial final months, direct clashes between these teams will prove decisive. One thing is certain: in La Liga 24/25, the relegation scrap promises a good bit of drama until the very end.

José C. Pérez can be found on social media here, and if you’re hungry for more, find their excellent work here.

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Less than 24 hours after their disappointing Copa del Rey draw against Atletico Madrid, Barcelona have received some much-needed good news in the form of a return from injury for Andreas Christensen.

Christensen, who has been linked with a summer move over the last few months, has not played since the opening day of the 2024-25 season, when he appeared as a substitute against Valencia. A few days after that match, he underwent surgery to correct a problematic Achilles tendon injury, and this ended up with him out of action for five months.

He returned to Barcelona’s matchday squad in January, but failed to make an appearance against Getafe, Benfica or Valencia. Then, he suffered another injury setback that has seen him out for the last four weeks, although he has now recovered from this.

On Wednesday, Barcelona confirmed that Christensen has received the medical green light from club officials, as per MD. As such, he is now set to be available for this weekend’s showdown La Liga clash against Real Sociedad at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys.

Christensen’s return means that Barcelona now only have two injured players, those being Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, who is nearing a return, and Marc Bernal, who will not play again his season after suffering a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament during a match against Rayo Vallecano back in August. It also means that Hansi Flick is back to his full quota of central defenders, with Pau Cubarsi, Inigo Martinez, Ronald Araujo and Eric Garcia also at the disposal of the German head coach.

Christensen has been a very impressive performer during his time at Barcelona, and it will be interesting to see how he is utilised by Flick during the final months of the season. He can be used in midfield if required, as was the case with Xavi Hernandez during the 2023-24 campaign.

The post Barcelona confirm defender’s return from injury ahead of crucial Real Sociedad fixture appeared first on Football España.

Real Madrid will be reminded of the quality of Martin Zubimendi on Wednesday night, as they visit Anoeta in the Copa del Rey semi-final, in what could be his best chance of lifting a trophy before a potential departure. The Basque midfielder is hotly tipped to leave Real Sociedad in the summer, with a €60m release clause that a number of clubs are willing to activate.

It is not the first time that Zubimendi has been linked with an exit, with Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Liverpool having all tried to secure his signature in the past. However it is also acknowledged that he was never closer to leaving than he was last summer, having at one point given the green light for a move to Anfield.

This season he has again been linked with a move to Arsenal for a second time in three seasons, as well as Manchester City and Real Madrid. Los Blancos are interested in Zubimendi as a potential option to take over the reins from Toni Kroos in midfield, a year after his exit. However Diario AS say that Real Madrid are aware that Arsenal are in pole position for Zubimendi, and a move to London is ‘advanced’.

They are keen to remain well-positioned for Zubimendi though, and will continue a dialogue with the 25-year-old Euros winner, in case they do plump for a move in the summer. The form of Aurelien Tchouameni and Dani Ceballos has eased their interest in Zubimendi though, something confirmed by Relevo. They say that a final call on their plans will not be made until May or June time.

Zubimendi has demonstrated just how good he can be season after season in La Liga and in recent years, internationally. He is said to be attracted by a move to the Premier League, but many regard the X-factor to be the future of Xabi Alonso. Should the Bayer Leverkusen manager head to Real Madrid this summer, then the chance to work with his idol could sway Zubimendi’s mind.

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Real Madrid face a tough match against in-form Real Betis this weekend, and their chances of victory have taken a blow in the last few hours after it was confirmed that Antony will be available for the hosts.

Earlier this week, Antony himself revealed that Betis had appealed the red card that he was shown during last Sunday’s 2-1 victory at Getafe. The on loan Manchester United was dismissed in the final minutes at the Coliseum for a lunge on Juan Iglesias, but after replays showed that there was very little contact, the Spanish Football Federation announced that it has been overturned.

This decision has been welcomed with delight at Betis, as they now have one of their best players available to face Real Madrid at the Benito Villamarin on Saturday. However, their opponents for that match are not happy, to say the least.

As reported by Diario AS, there is a feeling of “total indignation” at Real Madrid at the decision of the Federation to overturn Antony’s red card. Sources have told the newspaper as follows:

“In their eagerness to go hunting against Real Madrid, they are skipping even the legal arguments. Removing a red card that has been clearly assessed by the refereeing body and well explained in the minutes is as if the judges from now on are going to re-referee the matches. They don’t hold back, they have done it with the desire to hurt us. They have declared war on us and use all imaginable means, even if they expose the very referees they claim to defend so much.”

The Technical Committee of Referees (CTA) are said to have been equalled surprised at the decision to overturn Antony’s red card, and the same can even be said for Betis, who reportedly did not hold out much hope for their appeal being successful.

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Real Madrid will be without some key players in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final against Real Sociedad, due to injury. La Real have got two of their key players back ahead of schedule for the 21:30 CEST kick-off at Anoeta.

Despite Carlo Ancelotti contradicting the news on Tuesday, on Wednesday Real Madrid confirmed a squad without Fede Valverde, Kylian Mbappe, Eder Militao, Dani Carvajal and Jesus Vallejo, all due to fitness issues. The positive news is that Jude Bellingham is available, as he reappears for the only game in a four-game run which he is not suspended for. Diario AS expecty him to start with Lucas Vazquez at right-back, and a surprise up front: Brahim Diaz through the middle.

#RealMadrid travel to Anoeta without Kylian Mbappe and Fede Valverde, but with Jude Bellingham. Diario AS predict his return in a strong line-up for Los Blancos.

Nayef Aguerd and Luka Sucic are due to be fit for #RealSociedad in the first leg of the #CopadelRey semi-final. pic.twitter.com/mvnKyHBERU

— Football España (@footballespana_) February 26, 2025

Thibaut Courtois will also make way for Andriy Lunin, but Marca believe that it will be a rare start for Endrick Felipe without Mbappe in the side. Otherwise, the two Madrid-based outlets concur on the line-up for Carlo Ancelotti.

Real Sociedad manager Imanol Alguacil confirmed that Luka Sucic and Nayef Aguerd would be back from injury for the clash, but Jon Pacheco, Arsen Azkharyan and Alvaro Odriozola all miss out through injury. Brais Mendez is expected to start in midfield alongside Martin Zubimendi and Sucic in midfield.

There will be no place in the line-up for Sheraldo Becker, with Ander Barrenetxea and Takefusa Kubo getting the nod either side of Mikel Oyarzabal. Real Madrid are trying to end of a run of over 60 years without a Copa del Rey win in Donostia-San Sebastian, while La Real are trying to address a concerning streak of just one win in 13 outings against Los Blancos.

The last time these two met in the Copa was the occasion of that victory though, with La Real beating Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu on the way to the 2020 Copa trophy.

The post Predicted teams Real Sociedad-Real Madrid: Jude Bellingham to return, Kylian Mbappe out appeared first on Football España.