Víctor Orta (Valladolid) hits back: 3,000+ minutes for the academy

Víctor Orta, the Real Valladolid sporting director, pushed back on criticism over the club’s academy focus, backing it up with hard numbers: last season, youth players logged 11,010 minutes, and this campaign is already past 3,000. He said this on Wednesday at José Zorrilla during the presentation of Japanese midfielder Ryotaro Ito.

Orta also addressed the noise around the project, calling out those remarks directly and saying “the data contradict it”. He added that “the renewal of Arnu is progressing properly.”

On Ito, Orta described the move as a market opportunity, saying Ito agreed to wages fitting the category. He noted the club is running double and triple sessions every week, alongside extra strength work for Ito’s ankle/toe area, but he refused to set a timeline for when he’ll be ready to play. Ito, meanwhile, said he knew Valladolid was a big club, that interest existed from elsewhere, but once he gave his word he only thought about coming—and he aims to have his best season and succeed in Spain.