Categories: Football

Mamardashvili, the unexpected hope of Valencia

At 21 years old and after arriving at the club a year ago through the back door, the Georgian goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili has become the unexpected hope of the Valencia for the end of the Copa del Rey who will play on Saturday against Betis. The offensive power of the team Manuel Pellegrini makes us foresee that a good part of the options of ‘champion’ of the club of Mestalla they are in the gloves of whoever, no matter what happens, is already a cornerstone of Valencia from the future.

Mamardashvili arrived at Valencia in June of last year but he did it with the plan that he would be the goalkeeper of the Mestalla on the Third RFEF. In other words, the one who should have been a goalkeeper in the Spanish fifth division will be, except for surprise, a starter in the final of the Copa del Rey.

The Georgian arrived at the entity on loan from the Dinamo Tblisi with a purchase option of one million euros and after having premiered in the Europa League. The Valencia announced his signing on the social networks of the youth teams.

Con Jasper Cillessen, Jaume Doménech and Cristian Rivero In the first team he was going to be the fourth goalkeeper but his good preseason and the injuries in the final stretch of that period of preparation of the first two opened the doors to starting the league for him.

Mamardashvili played and liked but bordalas had assured Cillessen that he was his starting goalkeeper to convince him not to look for an exit in the summer and the coach fulfilled his promise by ‘returning’ him to the starting lineup after six games.

He won the Georgian that the Valencia make the purchase option effective in December (with a discount for ‘prompt payment’ that left it at 850,000 euros) although he ran out of minutes because bordalas god the Copa a Jaume.

But then injuries messed everything up. He fell Cillessen and the technician put Domenech also in LaLiga but the one of Almenera left doubts and just before the semifinal against the Athleticthe technician again reached for Mamardashvili.

His great saves against the Athletic and his good performances in LaLiga (only four goals conceded in eight of the last eight games) seem to have decided Bordalas, that even included him in the rotations against the Villarreal to protect you from possible injury. The Valencia it is in your hands.