Joseba Etxeberria and Carlos Neva: Albacete’s defence is failing

Carlos Neva and Joseba Etxeberria, the Albacete captain and a key voice in the coaching staff, agree on the core issue: the team’s defensive fragility. In nine league games, Albacete have conceded 20 goals, leaving them with the worst record in the competition: 5 scored and 20 conceded.

Neva said the squad knows they must “start building from behind” through “defensive solidity”, and he placed the responsibility on “the 25 players” inside the dressing room, calling what happened in Valladolid an “accidente gordísimo”. Etxeberria disagreed with that framing, saying “no estoy de acuerdo”, and took ownership of the plan: “Es también culpa mía por el plan de partido defensivo”, adding that defending is everyone’s job and that the forwards must press and make opponents’ build-up harder.

The problem isn’t only in defence. Albacete have netted 5 times in nine rounds, making them the lowest scorers in the league, and they still haven’t kept a clean sheet this season, unlike last year when they managed four shutouts by this stage. MARCA highlights the focus on improving both phases. This Saturday they travel to El Molinón, where last season they overturned a 3-0 and won 3-4 in a dramatic finish. Etxeberria avoids calling it a “final” but insists: “ya desde este fin de semana las cosas van a cambiar”.