The Eibar signings have not played friendlies with the Guipuzcoan First Division team, when there are only a few days left until the 2020-2021 season begins. The Polish extreme Damian Kadzior and the midfielder Jose Recio have not been able to act in the preparatory games of the Barça team, which on Saturday (16 hours) he will receive Celta in Ipurua in the league start, so they are hardly going to help much in the debut. Both incorporations have not yet been presented to the media.
Damian Kadzior, a left-handed winger who plays on the right wing, was traded on Saturday, August 29 by the Dinamo Zagreb, to which Eibar paid about two million euros, according to the Croatian press. Without being able to train with his new club, two days later the international midfielder was called up with the Polish national team to play two official matches of the Nations League, the Netherlands-Poland Friday, September 4, and the Bosnia and Herzegovina-Poland Monday 7.
However, due to some inconvenience, Kadzior returned to the Basque Country without playing for Poland. He exercised alone on Thursday, September 3, and with the entire squad a day later. But his physical problems prevented him from participating in the last two preparation matches for the Eibarreses, against Osasuna (1-1) on Friday the 4th in Tajonar, and against Athletic Club (2-2) on Saturday the 5th in Lezama.
Jose Luis Garcia del Pozo, known footballingly as Tough, was loaned by Leganés last Friday. As he had not played a friendly match with the Madrid team, the Barça coach, Jose Luis Mendilibar, He preferred not to take risks with the Malaga midfielder. So, Jose Recio, with a lot of experience in Primera (he has played for Málaga and Granada, as well as Leganés), he has dedicated himself to training, but without competing the first days, for what Mendilibar can know what your physical condition is.
Mendilibar regrets that the club is “late” with the signings
Mendilibar currently has 20 players in the squad (18 are from last season and two are the additions), with José Ángel 'Cote' seriously injured, and without Anaitz Arbilla having been able to play friendlies due to physical problems. Of course, six members of the subsidiary have made the preseason with the Barça first team, the CD Vitoria, Third Division (Jon Mikel Magunagoitia 'Jonmi', Sergio Cubero, Unai Dufour, Miguel Ángel Atienza, Unai Arietaleanizbeaskoa, and Eñaut Mendia); and three other players who were loaned out last season to other clubs (José Antonio Martínez, Asier Benito, and Roberto Olabe).
But Mendilibar it was very clear last Saturday when he spoke after the match against Athletic. “We lack a lot of people and there are also 'excess' many people. In training on Tuesday (the squad has two days off, Sunday and Monday) we will be with 28 or 30 players, but only about 17 will remain in the first team. We still have 3 or 4 that have to arrive “he explained. “We are late,” he said referring to the signings. “People have to come and I hope they don't do it on October 4, when three league games have already been played,” he said.
Six footballers from last season do not follow (Orellana, Escalante, Ramis, Charles, De Blasis and Cristóforo), so it was clear for a long time that Eibar had to incorporate new players to cover the gaps left by those who have left. The technician of Zaldibar regrets the delay in arriving reinforcements, due to the fact that the transfer market is stopped, both due to the economic problems that the coronavirus has caused in the clubs, as well as the fact that players can be incorporated until October 5, almost a month after starting the league. Something illogical, because the normal thing would be for the league start to coincide with the closing of the transfer market.
“We will have to make a lot of signings, 7 or 8 players will have to sign. It would be bad to start the league on September 12, with five players missing. We have to be calm, but we cannot sleep “, warned Mendilibar on August 14, when preseason began three weeks ago. Since then, there have only been two reinforcements, Polish winger Kadzior and midfielder Recio, who have not been able to wear the Barça shirt in friendly matches, so they must have some time to adapt to the idea of the game of Mendilibar.