With a decent tailor, a leopard might stride out with a passable spots makeover. Sadly for CD Tenerife fans, coach Ramis seems unshakeable from his defence based style of play. Right from the kick off FC Andorra found plenty of space and encouragment to attack as the home side back peddalled.
Fleet footed left winger Mo Dauda was used deep to back up defender Mellot, leaving an inviting wide launch pad for Jacobo to test the Tenerife defence. After 13 minutes, the move fed Carlos for the opening goal. The equality was restored after 31 minutes by an individual goal from Elady, cutting in and beating two defenders before unloading his shot just past the goalie. That should have been the green light for a home assault but caution was still the coach´s mantra.
Gallego lumbered and laboured to little effect as the main home striker but it was predictable and not enough to upset the composed away team. Ramis seemed content at all square, flair players are not his preferred option. Sam Shasoua got a miserly 23 minutes as a late sub for the inventive Dauda. Winger Arvin Appiah got a run out for the last five minutes but looked way off the pace. Worst of all, fit again Alex Corredera never got a look in, he is the entertaining player that the fans love to see. For the final 20 minutes, Tenerife rarely visited their opponents half, it was very hard to watch.
The coach´s line ups show no ambition and drain the enthusiasm from the fans. Lurking in 15th place, Tenerife need to make a vast improvement in the new year, but attracting transfer window signings to such a dour ship will be a tough sell. Somethng´s gotta give.
Weakened at the knees by football´s current femme fatal, the penalty spot. Enric Gallego made amends with a 2-0 strike that withstood a Alaves rally. Expecting to retake top spot in Spain´s Second Division, Alaves found hosts CD Tenerife in defiant and creative mood as they outplayed the visitors for most of the game.
Ivan Romero was always ready to strike from the shadow of the target man, Gallego, and Waldo gave good support on the left. The big centre forward should have learned from the World Cup follies when he was brought down and rose to take the penalty on the half hour. It was a straight soft shot that barely tickled keeper Silvera.
Team mate Teto took some attention of the big man a few minutes later as he reacted well to a loose ball, turned well and buried it in the corner of the net to take the lead. There was even redemption for the man himself five minutes into the second half, determination carried him through and this time he showed no mercy. A 2-0 lead still left Alaves with some hope, Aitor Sanz and Sipcic in particular worked hard to squeeze them down, and it seemed to be working.
Sub Sylla came on hungry and sniffed out a half chance, looping a shot past home keeper Soriano after 81 minutes. It made for a nervous end but Tenerife held firm. Alaves never gave up, Duarte shaved a post, but it was a happy ending to the 100th game in charge for coach Ramis.
The league is a harsh judge of resurgent form and reborn hope, the final two pre christmas league games will need to pull in some more points. The Santa Cruz crowd also need their confidence rebuilding, another drop to a 6,794 attendance came after weeks of under achieving. As a stand alone game this was good to watch and a tonic for bruised pride after recent cave ins. Now in 14th place, Tenerife can at least hope to reach higher with a new President and a few tweaks to the squad in the January window.
While last seasons loan player Mollejo had a lively return on the right for Real Zaragoza, it was another ex loanee Valentin Vada who destroyed hosts CD Tenerife with the only two goals of the game. Tenerife couldn´t complain, they were poor all over the pitch. The home defence was creaky, particularly left back Nacho who was continually exposed by the smart thinking yellow and blacks with their neat passing and cool finishing. Zaragoza had some luck on their side, after their goalie Alvarez had two bad cases of poor juggling from Tenerife shots in the first half.
Vada did little to impress last season in Santa Cruz, on loan from Almeria and got a free transfer to Zaragoza this summer and was buzzing in this Friday night game. Ivan Romero missed a sitter for the home cause, hitting the side of the netting, and Mo Dauda showed flashes of skill down the left flank but Tenerife seemed to run out of ideas as the game wore on.
Vada anticipated wonderfully for the opener after 23 minutes, latching onto a deep cross, and when he doubled the agony after 67 minutes there were streams of home fans deserting the stadium. At least another youth prospect, Alassan, got a run out with 18 minutes left but it was painful to watch and by the final whistle those remaining from the 11,443 crowd vented their frustration at the players and the negative tactics of coach Ramis. Now in 14th position, pressure is growing on the coach after this horror show.
Quality opponents coming off a 5-0 win, Granada might have seen CD Tenerife as easy prey but it was the Santa Cruz team that showed the hunger, the eye for goal, and the pride in a comfortable 2-0 home win.
Changes are almost a foregone conclusion under coach Ramis, but they worked well this week with Aitor Sanz and Javi Alonso running a tight ship in midfield. Juan Soriano was immense between the sticks for Tenerife, he was solid behind the ball and frusrated the divisions top scorer, Uzani, with first half stops with feet, knees, and head. The keeper even turned provider with a 31st minute long punt upfield to Ivan Romero, who muscled past two defenders for the opening goal.
Mo Dauda was a constant menace to Granada and 20 minutes into the second half he was shaping up in front of goal when the visiting goalie chopped him down in the box. Gallego stepped up to double the damage and deny Granada any lingering hope. There was further good news when Elady made a return from injury. The squad all worked hard for the common cause, and that instilled greater appreciation from the fans.
After the final whistle, the Tenerife team surged towards the 11,472 crowd to soak up the applause. That win pushed the team up to 12th position, eyes are certainly looking upward now, anything is possible on this form.
Well The defence was tighter and ensured a 0-0 home draw for CD Tenerife v Cartagena. Coach Ramis continued to ring the changes with Aitor Buñuel (right) and Andoni Lopez (left) starting in the full back slots. But the players that made way for them, Nacho and ultra consistent Mellot were back in their old roles within the hour. The constant tinkering is coming under the spotlight at the team struggles to put any prolonged form together.
Cartagena were revelling in their surprise status of third place. Home keeper Soriano had to be alert and agile to repel Borja Valle after the defence failed to cover the gap. Sipcic was magnificent at the heart of home defence, and Larrea was a quality playmaker in the middle of the park. It all ground to a halt in front of goal with Garces and Romero both struggling to cash in on the set ups from Appiah, and his later replacement Mo Dauda. The Ghana winger clipped the post with a rasping shot as frustration built.
Cartagena had their own hero in goalie, Escandell but were left to regret twice putting the ball in the Tenerife net – after straying into offside positions. Tenerife need to string a few wins together to get into the top half of the table and should be exploiting their home games. The crowd was up again, a bunper 12,180 turnout on an evening of extreme rain and sunshine but it´s the changing climate of the coach´s selections that are putting a few clouds in the Santa Cruz sky.
Even with three strong penalty claims not even referred to VAR, CD Tenerife were again their worst enemy in a 1-1 home draw with Real Sporting Gijon.
Just 15 minutes into the rain lashed action, Cristo Gonzalez was gifted the opening goal for Sporting. A long ball should have been cut out by Jose Leon but he committed the cardinal sin of turning his back on the attacker. The former Tenerife nurtured player was left with a simple, clear shot. These days an asset of Italian club Udinese, Cristo is on his fourth loan out and can´t have come across such generosity on his travels.
The home attack was off song with play continually drifting down the left side. Ivan Romero looked lightweight in front of goal as big built Gallego hung back deep. Young Teto chased and harried to pick up scraps on the right. Tenerife were better in the second half with more expansive football but Sporting had a tight clamp on them. Confidence was sapped as the ref ignored those appeals, the worst being a double hand ball as Teto burst through into the enemy goal mouth. A double change after 68 minutes saw home coach Ramis bring on Arvin Appiah for Romero and Javi Alonso for Larrea in midfield.
The return of local boy Alonso after long term injury breathed new creativity into the heart of the home team, something they will need as Alex Corredera undergoes treatment and possible surgery on his foot. Appiah tormented Sporting with his speedy right flank runs and inside charges. The former Nottingham Forest youth player launched a trio of strikes into the box, one was cleared into space where Nacho returned it quickly with a rasping shot past the goalie to level the game with just over 10 minutes left.
With eight games gone, Tenerife are still making too many errors and sit in 15th position. The fans are showing patience and belief, even on a soaking night, the gate was slightly up with a 11,057 attendance.
Even the club groundsman couldn´t cover as much pitch as 21 year old Teto, the new hero of the CD Tenerife fans. Making his first senior start, the local born forward drew on 10 years nurturing through the youth ranks to score a decisive goal to seal a 3-1 home win over Malaga CF.
Who cares if Malaga were a shambles even before a sending off left them a man short for 30 minutes. Tenerife were trying to break free from an injury crisis and learned a lot about the hidden depths of the squad. Midfielder Waldo Rubio showed his creativity from the left of midfield, Mellot was as solid as ever, defending behind him, and Gallego was the sharp and strong target man in front of goal. The powerful striker´s aim was true when Waldo beat two defenders and slipped the ball back to Gallego for a 17th minute lead.
It could have ben a false dawn, Tenerife have looked vulnerable when leading this season. Gallar levelled just before the break with a free shot after defender Sipcic´s soft clearing header fell at the visitors feet. Malaga didn´t have the quality to build on their good fortune, their desparate hacking of home players saw Bustinaza sent off for two bookings. Gallego wasn´t going to refuse a generous 76th minute home penalty to edge back in front.
It just needed someone to slam the door on Malaga. Sub Appiah had replaced Waldo on the left and his pace and a cross put the spotlight on Teto, who bulged the back of the net. Coach Ramis replaced Teto with a minute still on the clock, allowing the rising star to bask in the adulation of 10,177 fans chanting his name. The next step to climbing the table is for CD Tenerife to win away. Teto will have to fight to keep his place as players begin to return from injury, but he has the talent and temperment to earn more ovations.
Mixing the completion of ten transfer window arrivals with an injury crisis, CD Tenerife had to show character, attitude, and aggression to clinch a 1-0 home win over Real Racing Club de Santander.
The 54th minute decider showed off those qualities as Sipcic, a late centre back replacement for Jose Leon powered a long ball upfield for Waldo to speed down the right and deliver a tight low cross for Borja Garces to slam past the keeper. Borja (a loanee from Atletico Madrid) had missed several first half chances and an advertising board felt the force of his frustrated boot as he celebrated.
Racing, rock bottom after three games, looked poor bordering on pathetic, but it was stalemate at the break as the unfamiliar home line up got to know each other. Gallego had netted after 38 minutes but a VAR offside call wiped it out. Alexandre Corredera played through the pain barrier in midfield and as Tenerife knitted together, the coach added rising youth forward Teto and the last of the loan signings Arvin Appiah for Mo Dauda and Waldo after 65 minutes.
The young gun Teto relished another run out, and Appiah looked strong and full of skills down the right. The Nottingham Forest developed England under 20 player was eager to please after parent club Almeria signed him for 8.8 million euros and then starved him of first team action. Five minutes of added time tested the nerves of the 11,804 Santa Cruz crowd, especially when German floored Teto with a wild crunching tackle.
Early season doubts were swept aside as in favour of hope and expectancy. Two more local lads, Ibra and David got late minutes and can look forward to more chances. There´s a lot of potential in the squad, given a hasty clear up of the injuries, a bright path beckons.
Jose Angel Jurado cracked his 37th minute shot into the CD Lugo net after Samuel Shasoua had teased a pass through a mob of defenders. A quality move that typified the build up play of CD Tenerife as they dominated the first half. It was a debut strike for the well travelled new arrival from Alcorcon but the home side should have added further goals before Alberto tied the game after 65 minutes.
Other summer signings were making their mark on the game, Mo Dauda from Ghana via Anderlecht followed up his rocket goal in the 2-1 opening day defeat at Eibar, with more glorious skills. Starting on the right, Mo switched to the left flank and mixed pacey runs with hard graft to track back to help the defence. Lugo goalie Oscar did well to prevent Tenerife from pulling clear but the ref had the biggest influence with a bizarre red card for Alex Corredera after 59 minutes. Even though it was a Lugo player crashing into the static Alex, the ref sent the bewildered home midfielder off.
Alberto cashed in with a free kick leveller six minutes later. Tenerife tried to up the tempo and replaced Shashoua with Waldo, a seventh new arrival hot off the plane. It was back to even numbers when Alberto made a crude lunge to take the legs from under Mo. The perpetrator left the field with a red card while Mo limped off with support from the physios. A quick shuffle saw 20 year old local B team player Teto filling the void. Small in stature but full of running, and hammering on the first team door, Teto couldn´t repeat his pre season friendly goal against Ibiza.
The ref had to add six minutes for his interventions as Lugo held on to the draw. The new players are all impressing, once they have gelled together this should be another promotion chasing season – a 11,491 first home crowd of the season showed the raised expectancy after last terms near miss. Fans will be relieved once the transfer window has closed on 2 September, hopefully with no key players being lured away.
Three goals created by home defnders sounds like a winning recipe. Sadly, two ended up in CD Tenerife´s home net and handed promotion to Girona FC for a frustrating 1-3 defeat and the end to a thrilling centenary season for the Santa Cruz club.
A well defended 0-0 away leg in Girona had tilted the play off final in favour of the blue and whites, and pre match tickets had been selling on the black market for 500 euros and upwards, others perched on roof tops. Just a few returned away tickets short of the 23,000 ground capacity came hoping for a coronation. It was 13 years since Tenerife last won admittance to the top flight – and that came in a league game at Girona.
Soriano made a powerful punch clearance from Girona´s Juanpe after 18 minutes, the goalie has had an outstanding season between the home sticks. Stuani had been clamped in the away leg but after 41 minutes the secons divisions top scorer was gifted a penalty when home defender Sergio Gonzalez handled the ball. The Uruguay forward stepped up and increased his tally to 24 goals. One of the most consistent of the Tenerife back four, Sergio was replaced by coach Ramis after the break by Carlos Ruiz. The 39 year old centre back was probably running our for his last game but crowned it with a well headed goal at the post from an inswinging cross by Shaq Moore.
It should have been a signal for a home surge but barely 10 minutes later, Jose Leon was caught in two minds as a fierce strike headed for him. Trying to chest the ball down he deflected it wide of the stranded Soriano. Home goals were a must now, Bermejo and Mario were having quiet games and were replaced by Elady and Brit Sam Shasoua but it didn´t bring an instant solution with time on the Catalan visitors side. Part of the Manchester City group, Girona have a few euros to flash but their killer blow came from a 19 year old youth product, Arnau, who had space and time to trap a 79th minute incoming ball and fire it past Soriano for a 1-3 lead that stuck firm.
It was a heart breaking end to the season. The World Cup means only a few weeks rest before the new season kicks off. Several players have reached the end of their contracts, others will have impressed envious eyes, so there is a lot of work for the management to do. The season has been a huge leap forward, fine tuning is the key rather than the usual wholesale changes but the biggest head scratcher is how to make the patchy home form as good as the points gathered on away travels.