Espanyol: Was it Really that Bad?

Following last seasons relegation from Division 4 Espanyol were tipped as one of the top contenders to push for promotion and bonce back under the reign of Earle, who had nearly saved them from relegation the season before. This, however, is not what happened for the Barcelona based club. Sloppy losses, inconsistency and poor team morale left Espanyol in 12th after the final game of the season. This left fans felling underwhelmed, disappointed and unsure of the clubs future. Despite this many fans stated that they don’t wan to see Earle sacked. One fan said the following;
“It’s not his fault at all, its not been a great season but how do the club expect him to do without the correct funding? 50% of the teams money comes from his transfer profits on developing players, if they aren’t giving him the resources needed then how will we ever move forward?” 
This point of view was shared by many who felt the club needed to invest more in the success of the team than the success of the franchise. Despite the poor finish, Earle has remained adamant that the season wasn’t actually that bad. A great shield run, some big transfers and talks of several new contracts should breath hope into the fans for next season. Following the game against Flamengo Earle spoke out in a press conference about the season and about his views and his future;
“Well I know that some will be disappointed with how the season has gone, but not me. I think its a tough league, it has some great teams, and when you look at it we were 3 points off playoffs. You know, that’s how close it is. One more win and everyone would be saying it’s a great season. What they’re forgetting is this was our first full season together, me and the team. And it’s made harder by being in a new league with very high, almost unrealistic, expectations. I said last season that it may take a season, or maybe even two, before we properly adapt and move up the leagues. But it’s not all about the league. People seem to be forgetting our fantastic Shield run. For a small team like us to get to the Quarter Finals, and even then not lose until penalties, that’s impressive. And that’s before we mention who we were up against. I’ve said before I want to do as best I can for the team and so next season I’m looking to improve us. I’m not going anywhere, we have the players capable of doing well, we just need the right formula and a bit of consistency. The club is in talks with several players to get new contracts in place and we feel once that’s done the players will be more relaxed and will be able to focus on their football a bit more and hopefully it will show”.
Earle has signed a new 2 year contract himself since the press conference dismissing any rumours of a move away from the Spaniards. Fans were asked to complete a questionnaire of the seasons, the results are as follows.

Best Game of the Season?
Espanyol 3-2 Bayern (92.7% of votes)
Having beaten Augsburg and Liverpool to get to Round 3 of the cup, players and fans alike expected reality to hit them when the Division one German giants came to visit. However, the Spaniards put up a fight and were 2-1 up by half time thanks to a Sandro Wagner brace. By the 80th minute it was back level at 2-2. With 4 minutes left, substitute Christian Kabasele shocked the away fans by putting the Spanish side 3-2 up. Espanyol proceeded to the quarters thanks to one of the clubs most historic victories.

Worst Game of the Season?
H Berlin 4-0 Espanyol (73.2% of votes)
A game which many say cost Espanyol their season. With Earle having returned home due to a family emergency, French assistant coach, Rami Tupmass, decided to play the youth squad, who had been defeated the night before. Berlin went on to win the game 4-0 and hand Espanyol their biggest defeat of the season. Following the game the assistant coach was fired and Richard Blower was brought in.

Best Player of the Season?

Benjamin Moukandjo

Benjamin Moukandjo (84.9% of votes)
Benjamin Moukandjo was signed on the 16th of June for £6.2 million making him Earles most expensive signing. Having missed the first 4 games due to Espanyols transfer ban, The Cameroon international got off to good start in his first 2 games. However, it was the third game of the season where fans got a taste of his ability when the forward netted 3 times in a 4-2 victory over Dynamo Moskva. In his next 31 starts this season he bagged 12 goals while setting up 11 more and picking up 8 man of the match awards in the process.

Biggest Let Down of the Season?
Rodrigo Mora (62.5% of votes)
Having signed from Dynamo Moskva on July 15th in exchange for £5 million and Jose Antonio Reyes, fans were expecting big performances. With Benjamin Moukandjo in good form, the Uruguayan was picked to play on the wing with the occasional game up front. However, the 28 year old failed to deliver and was soon dropped to the bench. Since signing he has made 13 appearances (6 off the bench) yet he has only contributed 1 goal and 1 assist. As a result Earle has told the forward to pack his bags as he is no longer needed at the club.

Willy Caballero

Best Signing of the Season?
Willy Caballero (6.7% of votes) (Benjamin Moukandjo 88.4% but excluded)
Having already highlighted Benjamin Moukandjo we decided to exclude the forward. In 2nd was veteran keeper Willy Caballero. Having joined from Chievo Verona for £5.5 million the 35 year old went straight into the first team replacing Volkan Demirel. The Argentine keeper has played 30 games this season and has been awarded man of the match on 3 occasions. Espanyol fans can blame many things on their poor season, but their keeper is not one of them.

Worst Signing of the Season?
Samuele Eto’o (34.2%) (Rodrigo Mora 68% of votes but excluded)
Once again the highest selected player has already been discussed and so has been excluded. In 2nd was Samuele Eto’o who had returned to Espanyol following a spell at Levante. Having joined for £1 million as cover up front the forward made only 5 appearances (all off the bench) in the league. In those games he scored no goals and also had no assists. He also started 5 Shield games where, again, he contributed no goals but assisted 2. He has now been sold to FC Twente for the same price he joined for.

Earle and Espanyol are now looking to strengthen the squad for next season as they look to mount a promotion challenge. Several players have already completed their moves to the Barcelona team with a number being cut as well. Earle has said the core of the team will remain the same but two or three changes will be made. Fans are intrigued to see who will be named captain with Ragnar Klavan, Mathieu Flamini, David Villa and Ricky Alvarez the 4 Earle has named as most likely candidates.