Hyderabad FC has currently five Spanish players if Nestor Gordillo is included. The other four Spanish players are Odei Onaindia, Fran Sandaza, Aridane Santana and Lluis Sastre. All of these players are in their 30’s. All these players have played in Spanish leagues.
Out of all these players, Fran Sandaza and Lluis Sastre are the only one’s who have played in the first division. Fran Sandaza has played for Girona FC in the years 2014-15 and in the years 2016-18. In 2017-18 season Girona FC was promoted to the first division.
Lluis Sastre has played for many Spanish clubs including Barcelona C and Barcelona B. Sastre played for three different first division clubs. He has played for Real Valladolid CF from 2012-15. It was during his time with Valladolid when Sastre scored a ‘golazo’ against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu.
He had played for CD Leganés in the 2015-16 season and helped them in getting promoted to the first division. He also marked his presence while playing for SD Huesca from 2017-19 by helping the get promoted to the first division. He has also played for Spain U-19 National team.
Lluis Sastre has surely had a huge impact on the performance of all the clubs he has played for. He is known for his quality passing, controlling air balls and long shots. As he is a Barcelona product, his playing style has made him successful in every club he has played for.
As there has been no update about Nestor Gordillo, Lluis Sastre might be a good replacement for him. The Nizams might have signed him for that reason. They have not given any update about Nestor and he has not yet reached India for the pre-season training.
All of last season’s foreign players have left the Nizams and the squad has been built right from scratch. The submission of the final squad list is only a week away.
Is Lluis Sastre different from Nestor?
Nestor’s performance had been below the mark last season. The midfielder played only 9 matches but still, his performance wasn’t up to what the fans had expected. He scored one goal and gave one assist last season.
As the Central Attacking Midfielder’s role is to be the creative point of contact for the team, he’s the most important player on the pitch. His role is to make quick, accurate and right decisions which can change the whole game the most important player on the pitch is the holding midfielder.
Lluis Sastre is the right choice for the Nizams. With Sastre’s presence in the squad, the future of Hyderabad FC looks bright. Sastre with his Barcelona playing style will surely make a huge influence in the club.
With the coach preferring 4-2-3-1 formation, Sastre will play as an attacking midfielder. He will hold the ball, dribble, look for an unimaginable gap and pass it in the front and let Joel Chianese, Narzary and Spanish beast Aridane Santana take care of the rest. We might not see Sastre scoring many goals unlike Nestor as Sastre mostly focuses on pushing the team forward with his skills.
He has the ability to stand out in the ISL too as he did with other clubs in other leagues. He is looking forward to playing in India and work with his teammates.
What did Hyderabad FC’s coach’s opinion on Sastre?
“I am very happy and excited to be able to play for Hyderabad FC in this season of the ISL. I have heard a lot of good things and I am already looking forward to starting training and meeting my teammates and the coach and working towards our goals.”
Coach Manolo Marquez is very confident about Sastre and thinks he will be a fantastic addition to the squad.
“He’s a central midfielder with a lot of quality and likes to arrive in the rival box too. Technically, he is a fantastic player and has played for FC Barcelona’s B team. He has always been an important player in all the teams that he has played for. We expect not just good football from Lluis, but experience and leadership will also be some of the things that he will bring to HFC.”
Hyderabad FC can astonish the whole league this season and Lluis Sastre will be very important for it along with Aridane Santana.
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