Real Sociedad’s defeat to Girona on Friday is set to have serious consequences for manager Sergio Francisco. In mid-October, with the Txuri-Urdin in the relegation zone, his position was already in question, but a win in the Basque derby and some more positive results appeared to have taken the pressure off.
However a run of three straight defeats appears to have put Francisco back in the spotlight. First falling in stoppage time at home to Villarreal, and the in a local derby at Alaves, a loss to struggling Girona could be the final straw for President Jokin Aperribay.
Sergio Francisco – ‘I see myself staying’
Speaking after the match, Francisco was forced to face a number of sharp questions, but told Mark that he was not focused on his position.
“It’s a very tough defeat. It’s not what we expected, what we wanted, but I’m still the Real Sociedad coach and, as long as I’m here, I see myself staying. And of course I have the energy to keep trying, pushing to try and get back to where we were two weeks ago.”
‘We’ve made fools of ourselves’ – Igor Zubeldia
The post-match comments of veteran defender Igor Zubeldia were certainly critical of La Real, and made his fury clear to Marca.
“The first 15 or 20 minutes were good, but after the goal we lost our way. We wanted to attack but we couldn’t. In the second half we made fools of ourselves. We felt powerless. Playing like that, any team in any division can beat us.”
Naturally, the following question was related to Francisco’s continuity, and it was hardly a ringing defence of his coach.
“When things aren’t going well, the first person blamed is the coach, but we’re the ones who actually play.”
Real Sociedad to sack Francisco sooner or later
It seems the decision has already been made though. As per NdG and carried by MDReal Sociedad President Jokin Aperribay and Sporting Director Erik Bretos held an emergency meeting following the defeat. During that meeting, they discussed whether to sack Francisco, and having decided that they would, debated the when and the how.
It is not clear whether they will move on from Francisco before their game with Levante next weekend, or wait until the Christmas break. In midweek, La Real also travel to face Eldense in the Copa del Rey. If he is dismissed, then one of B team manager Jon Ansotegi or his assistant Imanol Agirretxe will take the reins, so as to maintain some continuity at ‘Sanse’.
The Txuri-Urdin now sit just two points above the drop zone with RCD Mallorca still to play this weekend. Francisco, who had the difficult job of replacing now legendary manager Imanol Alguacil after seven years, has managed just four wins in his 16 Liga clashes, and only Girona and Levante have worse defences than his side.
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