After the revitalizing victory in Granada, Andorra faces its second consecutive away game with renewed spirits but the same goal of continuing to earn points and distancing itself from the lower part of the table. They will face a Sabadell team that has started the season strongly, riding the momentum from their promotion last June.
Undefeated at home
After three wins, three draws, and just one loss, Sabadell occupies the seventh position in the table, just one point away from the promotion playoff zone. It’s been a great start for the team coached by former tricolor manager Ferran Costa, who has managed to instill his intense and dynamic style of play in the arlequinat squad.
At home, Sabadell has secured all three of their victories this season by defeating Almería, Córdoba, and Oviedo, making them one of only two teams in the league, along with Almería, with a perfect record at their stadium.
Nearly 300 tricolors at the Nova Creu Alta
Saturday’s game will be the closest away match of the season for the tricolor team. Less than 200 kilometers separate the Principality from Sabadell, which means the team won’t feel alone at the Nova Creu Alta. About 300 fans will accompany the team led by Carles Manso against one of the league’s opponents that Andorra has faced the most times.
In fact, the two teams have faced each other a total of 18 times before this match, although this will be their first encounter in professional football. Mostly, the tricolors and arlequinats have met when they coincided in the 2nd Division B/1st RFEF a total of thirteen times, but they have also faced each other in the Copa del Rey, the Copa Catalunya, and the Copa Federació.
The last time Sabadell and Andorra faced each other was in the 2021/22 season, the season of the tricolor's first promotion to LaLiga. Adri Vilanova, with a goal in added time, gave the victory to the team from the Principality in the match played at the Nova Creu Alta, while at the Nacional, the tricolor team won 2-1. In total, in the league, Andorra slightly dominates the historical results with 5 victories, 4 draws, and 4 wins for Sabadell.
In the Copa del Rey, both teams faced each other in the second round of the competition during the 1983/84 season. After the arlequin victory (1-0) in Sabadell, Andorra leveled the tie in the match played in the Principality (2-1), but everything was ultimately decided in the penalty shootout, with greater fortune for the Catalan team.
Owono Returns
Returning to the present, the return of Jesús Owono, after completing his two international commitments, is the big news in the squad for tomorrow. Hugo López, who was already in Granada, is back with the group after playing with Spain U-20, while Randy Schneider will be unavailable after playing his last match of this international window with the Philippines this morning.
Thus, Schneider, along with Le Normand and Gael Alonso, will be the only absences for Carles Manso tomorrow, Saturday.
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