Levante - Season two in review

The First Team

It has been a long and arduous season for Levante. The club formed by Barcelona fans over 100 years ago have seen the giants from the Nou Camp take the league title in some style, whilst Parfitt’s charges have suffered relegation to division 5, along with two of their other Spanish rivals. Not only that, but the club go down with the ignominy of finishing bottom of the division. And just when things couldnt get any worse, SMTV pundit Gordon Gino Kinnear named Levante number 3 in his list of the 5 worst sides of the season. The ultimate kicking of a dog whilst it's down.  

Before the season started, the chairman gave Parfitt the target of avoiding relegation. The man himself was a little more confident in his troops though, and was hoping to match, if not beat season 1’s finishing position of 14th.

The season got underway with an exciting pre season friendly against city rivals Valencia. The game was built up locally, but didn’t go Levante’s way at all. A crushing 4-0 defeat was an ominous sign of things to come. The rest of pre-season was hit and miss. A win at home to Boca Juniors boosted confidence, and following up with a draw against Leicester saw Levante believe that maybe something could be achieved this season. Two defeats followed however, 1-0 at home to Inter Milan, and 2-0 in the final friendly at the Britannia against Stoke.

Just as the seasons first competitive fixture was upon the club, news broke that opponents, Internacional, had spent £10m on Cedric Bakumbu. The Spanish club had spent less than that in total during the off season, and it showed with the South American team taking a comfortable 2-0 win and the first three points of the season.

Four of the next five fixtures resulted in defeat as well, with a point in Cologne the only positive to draw from the opening six fixtures.

After that however, the club enjoyed a little reversal of form. In between defeats to Southampton in both the league and cup, they overcame Sean Cass’ Atalanta 2-1. That sparked the mini revival which saw Levante progress in the shield at the expense of Torino, winning on pens, and taking 11 points from 15 in the league with wins at home to Montpellier, Espanyol and away at West Ham, along with an away draw at Chievo Verona, and a home point against West Brom.

Back to back defeats away to Italian opposition in the guise of Udinese & Torino bought that little run to a swift end however. Including those two defeats, it would be 11 games before another victory, this time a 1-0 home win over Celta Vigo.

After that game however, it was one shocking result after another. Wins against West Ham & Southampton were the only ones recorded in 19 games in all competitions.

It was during this particularly dark run however that Levante claimed arguably their best Top 100 result to date. The pressure was off as they entertained the mighty Barcelona in the Copa Del Burro, and a decent performance was rewarded with a 1-1 draw. German centre back Manuel Friedrich scored the goal, and was also given Levante’s MOTM award for his performance. The centre half announced his retirement earlier this season, and the club wish him well for the future, whilst also thanking him for his efforts this season.

Relegation was confirmed with a 1-0 defeat to Hellas Verona with four games still remaining, but in truth the outcome hadn’t really been in doubt since about week 30. Levante were shipping them in like nobodies business, and couldn’t score at the other end. 

It has been a very bleak season all in all, so bleak in fact that an appearance from Kim Jong – Un would have lifted the atmosphere at times.

Levante's newest fan......

Clinton N’Jie finished as the clubs top scorer, his 8 accounting for nigh on 25% of Levante’s league strikes this season. So it seems obvious where the issues are, but is Parfitt the man to solve them?

He certainly believes so, and will be aiming for a much better showing next season. If this is not forthcoming, then who knows what fate will await him?

The U21’s

The youngsters played in the youth cup this season, and were drawn in a group alongside Bayer Leverkusen, Flamengo, Aston Villa, and Spanish giants Real Madrid. The academy side lost four of their eight games, and picked up one solitary win at Villa Park.

That on the face of it may not appear much better that the first XI this season. The youngsters however were competitive in every fixture. Only Leverkusen managed to beat them twice, and the only game in which they failed to score was at the Bernebeau.

The stand out result would have to be the 2-2 draw against a Real Madrid youth side which would have proved a real handful for Levante’s first team.

English wide man Jordan Graham, who joined last season from Wolves, and Spanish striker Dani Romera who was picked up as a free agent were joint top scorers with 3 each. Dutch midfielder Bart Ramselaar contributed 3 assists for his part, closely followed by Spanish midfielder Antonio Cotan with 2 assists.

Those performance’s, and those of some of the other youth players are why Parfitt is keen to stop at Levante and see the player’s blossom. The belief is that within the foreseeable future, there will be a vibrant young side playing attractive football, scoring goals and taking the club up through the divisions. Whether or not that actually happens remains to be seen, but certainly the U21 side has been far more impressive than the senior side this season.

Several of the youth team have already been rewarded with first team opportunities, with reasonable success. Bart Ramselaar has three assists for the first team to add to his three in the youth cup. If you add them together, he actually has more assists than any other player at the club this season.

Elsewhere, Isaac Success, Antonio Cotan and Dani Romera have all scored for the first team in various competitions this season.

Player of the season

3rd: Diego Souza – The Brazilian midfielder has been one of the few creative sparks in the side. He has been MOTM on 6 occasions, and contributed 3 goals and 5 assists in his role just behind the strikers.

2nd: John Ruddy – Seems odd that a goalkeeper should be up for this award given how poor the side have been defensively. That said, last season’s player of the season winner was determined to keep hold of the crown, and 11 MOTM and 2 TOTW nominations was a great effort.

1st: Clinton N’Jie – The young Cameroon forward has been asked to play in various positions this season. Sometimes as a lone striker, sometimes alongside somebody else, and occasionally behind the strikers. He has contributed 8 goals, 1 assist, nominated as Levante’s MOTM on 5 occasions, and also made TOTW as well. All in all, a rare bright light in a dark season.

Young player of the season

3rd: Isaac Success – The Nigerian joined from Chievo Verona for £4.7m, and has scored goals for both the youth and first teams. He is expected to lead the line in next season’s youth cup, and looks to have a huge future in front of him.

2nd: Bart Ramselaar – It was a difficult decision to choose between the top two. The Dutchman gaining more assists than anybody else in the junior or senior squads, along with his performances for both sides saw him have a great season, but it wasn’t quite enough.

1st: Odisseas Vlachodimos – Five MOTM awards from 8 youth games, including three 10/10 performances, and a MOTM nomination on his senior debut meant he couldn’t be overlooked. A magnificent effort from the young German, and hopefully there will be many more great seasons to come.

Golden boot

3rd: Alejandro Gomez – 4 goals

2nd: Jean Beausejour – 5 goals

1st: Clinton N’Jie – 8goals

It’s worth pointing out that both Gomez and Beausejour have left the club. Gomez headed back to Argentina, joining Boca Juniors in a swap deal that saw Aiden McGeady and Ivan Ramis come to Spain.

Jean Beausejour meanwhile made a surprise £4.7m move to German side Bayer Leverkusen.

A full list of this seasons ins and outs are at the bottom.

The clubs future

This at least appears to be in reasonable shape. There are 6 – 7 players currently in the youth squad that the gaffer feels have the potential to play in the Levante first XI sooner rather than later, and in fact some have had a run out as the season has drawn to a close. Not only that, but Parfitt and the club also feel that those players have the potential to play at a much higher level, maybe even the highest level, in Top 100. 

Isaac Success, Matt Miazga and Bart Ramselaar are the players currently attracting the most interest, but the young Brazillian Matheus Pereira recent signing Muamer Tankovic of Sweden, and young first team players Clinton N’Jie and Modou Barrow also give Levante lots of hope for a brighter future. Those players should all improve nicely as their careers progress, and if they can be kept together and improve at Levante, then it won’t need too many signings to have the makings of a very promising side.

The manager’s future

There has been a lot of furore surrounding the managerial merry go round, but Parfitt stuck by Levante when Bayern Munich came calling last season. He has been sounded out about a couple of jobs this season also, but stayed loyal to the club that has wormed its way into his heart. After speaking to the board a couple of weeks back, the club agreed to repay that loyalty and backed him to stay at the helm for a stab at getting back up next season.

If he fails though, then it remains to be seen what would happen. The man himself certainly wouldn’t expect an easy ride, and would take on the chin whatever is deemed to be the right course of action for his future. That said though, he is aiming to keep the club at the right end of the table next season.

Focus will be on the league first and foremost. Promotion will not necessarily be a pre-requisite for the club, but being competitive in every match will be.

The other competition the club will be focusing on is the youth cup, and they will be hoping that the youngsters can repeat some of the heroics of this season.

They will still compete in the Copa Del Burro as well as the other knock out competitions, but the league cup and shield are likely to feature a combination of youth and reserve players. Given the success of the lower league sides in the knock out competitions this season, that may sound like something of a lack of ambition, but the club have a limited playing squad, and need to make sure that players are not run into the ground with a long league campaign to negotiate.

Transfers for next season

The manager doesn’t expect a huge number of comings over the close season. The budget is small, so he will only go for a player he feels can either make an instant impact on the first team, or will have a lot of potential to improve. The club will be looking at players with the potential to improve rather than fading stars on the decline.

To that end, both Adriano, and record signing Gareth Barry have been made available for transfer. Young striker Angel Romero is also available, although in all three cases, the players will all remain at the club if an acceptable bid is not received. They certainly won’t be sold for the sake of it.

Adriano has already been courting the attention of another club, but preliminary talks have not as yet seen an acceptable offer come in, and the former Barcelona man, and Levante captain, remains available. 

Parfitt hasnt ruled out using the loan market, but at the moment feels it is unlikely. The thought process being that if we are giving a first team shirt to a youngster, then better on of our own. 

Season 2 Results

Fixtures

H - Valencia L 0 - 4 (Friendly)

H - Boca Juniors W 2 - 1 (Friendly)

A - Leicester D 1 - 1 (Friendly)

H - Inter Milan L 0 - 1 (Friendly)

A - Stoke L 0 - 2 (Friendly)

H  - Internacional L 0 - 2

A- Celta Vigo L 3 - 0

A - AZ L 3 - 1

H  - Malaga L 1 - 3

A - Koln D 1 - 1

H - Southampton L 0 - 2

H  - Atalanta W 2 - 1

A - Southampton L 3 - 2

H  - Torino D 1 - 1 (W5 - 4 pens)

H  - Montpellier W 1 - 0

H - Espanyol W 2 - 1

A - Chievo Verona D 2 - 2

H - West Brom D 1 - 1

H - Independiente D 1 - 1 (L4 - 2 pens)

A - West Ham W 0 - 2

A - Udinese L 1 - 3

A - Torino L 1 - 2

H - Genoa D 0 - 0

H - Athletic Club D 1 - 1

A - Hellas Verona L 3 - 2

H - Dnipro D 1 - 1

A - Barcelona L 3 - 0

A - River Plate L 3 - 1

H - Dynamo Moscow D 1 - 1

A - Internacional L 0 - 2

H - Celta Vigo W 1 - 0

A - Athletic Club L 4 - 0

H - AZ D 1 - 1

A - Malaga L 2 - 1

H - Barcelona D 1 - 1

H - Koln L 0 - 3

A - Atalanta L 0 - 3

H - Southampton W 2 - 1

A - Montpellier L  2 - 1

A - Espanyol L 1 - 0

H - Chievo Verona L 1 - 2

A - West Brom L 2 - 0

H - West Ham W 1 - 0

A - Udinese L 3 - 1

A - Malaga L 4 - 1 (Friendly)

H - Torino L 0 - 1

A - Genoa L 4 - 0

H - Hellas Verona L 1 - 0

A - Dnipro D 1 - 1

H - River Plate L 0 - 2

A- Dynamo Moscow D 1 - 1

Season 2 transfers out

Player out	Club to	Fee
Ibrahima Balde	Olympiacos	£5m
Jelle Vossen	Espanyol	£7m
Vaclev Kadlec	Tottenham	£8m
Hugo Nervo	Stuttgart	£6.5m
Nachu Buil	Zamora CF	£105k
Jon Aguirrezabala	Linense	£126k
Lee Angol	Peterborough	£426k
Inigo Cordoba	Caudal Deportivo	£124k
Filip Kubala	FC Slovacko	£136k
Robert Snodgrass	Hull	£4.2m
Alejandro Gomez	Boca Juniors	Aiden McGeady & Ivan Ramis
Jean Beausejour	Bayer Leverkusen	£4.7m
Jean Thome	Al Ittihad Tripoli	£314k
Sylvain Distin	Bournemouth	£193k
Conor Washington	QPR	£480k
Moses Odubajo	Standard Liege	Luis Pavez & Galilea Einar

Season 2 transfers in

Player in	Club from	Fee
Sidiki Maiga	AS Korofina	£320k
Matheus Pareira	Corinthians	£360k
Guillermo Varella	Huddersfield	£1.8m
Conserva Fagner	Corinthians	£4m + Sebastian Bassong
Conor Washington	Peterborough	£320k
Chris Forrester	Peterborough	£360k
Anthony Caceres	Central Coast Mariners	£360k
Manuel Friedrich	Free Agent	£398k
Sylvain Distin	Bournemouth	£204k
Israel Jimenez	Tigres UANL	£2.6m
Ryan Woods	Brentford	£800k
Steve Mounie	Free Agent	£150k
Dani Romera	Free Agent	£450k
Bart Ramselaar	AZ	£3m + RobertoTrashorras
Correia Adriano	Barcelona	£9m
Jean Thome	FC Vestsjaelland	£80k & + Euan Spark
Adil Nabi	Free Agent	£75k
Tommy Thompson	San Jose Earthquakes	£360k
Fahd Moufi	Free Agent	£240k
Kylian Hazard	Ujpest	£800k + Nikola Moro & Tibor Halilovic
Afonso Ronan	Free Agent	£255k
Isaac Success	Chievo Verona	£4.7m
Antonio Cotan	Sevilla	£1.9m
Roberto Nunez	Genoa	£500k
Modou Barrow	Cardiff	Jose Villarreal & Marcus Maddison
Alphonso Davies	Vancouver Whitecaps	£60k
Birama Ndoye	Grasshoppers	£1.8m
Samuel Eto'o	Espanyol	£1m
Adam Szalai	Sunderland	Conserva Fagner
Alberto Gilardino	US Palermo	£1.1m
Felipe Carvajal	Cartagines	£1m
Slavoljub Srnic	Crvena Zvezda	£900k + David Bentley and Anthiny Caceres
Jonathan Kodjia	Bristol City	£1.8m
Muamer Tankovic	Tigres UANL	£1.5m + Ryan Woods & Roberto Nunez