A wound that won't stop bleeding

The red-and-white team has conceded a goal in six of the nine matchdays played. Of those fifteen goals, nine were conceded at Muñoz Pérez Stadium and six on the road. Along with Tamaraceite, Atlético Antoniano, Las Palmas At., and CA Central, they are one of the teams that have conceded the most goals: an average of 1.67 goals per game.

Fifteen goals conceded in nine matches. That is the concerning record posted by Manolo Sánchez’s CD Estepona at the start of the season. A figure that places the Estepona team as the fourth-highest scoring team in Group IV of Segunda RFEF, surpassed only by the Gran Canaria reserve team, with sixteen goals conceded, as well as Tamaraceite and Atlético Antoniano, both with eighteen goals conceded.

CD Estepona has managed to keep a clean sheet only three times. Manolo Sánchez’s team is showing significant weakness in crosses from the flanks, aerial balls, and, above all, set pieces—their main Achilles’ heel. So far, the Marbella-born coach has not found a solution to one of his team’s biggest problems. The numbers are particularly concerning at the Muñoz Pérez Stadium, where CD Estepona concedes an average of 1.8 goals per game when playing in front of its home crowd.

Last Sunday in Lebrija, the birthplace of Antonio de Nebrija—author of the first grammar of the Castilian language—CD Estepona was unable to read the game or put up a fight. Paradoxically, in the very place where the man who brought order to words was born, the red-and-white team lost its way and ended up suffering a crushing defeat (4-1), conceding three goals in just six minutes. Until yesterday, the Lebrija-based team had yet to record a victory this season.

Furthermore, this is the second blowout defeat CD Estepona has suffered so far this season. The first came on Matchday 2, at the Muñoz Pérez Stadium, when Linares Deportivo won by a surprising 1-4 margin. Two losses by the exact same score once again highlight the defensive struggles of a team that is conceding too many goals to its opponents.

Time to Find the Right Formula

The defensive struggles aren’t being offset by the team’s offensive performance either. The red-and-whites have scored thirteen goals in the first nine matchdays—two fewer than they’ve conceded. Manolo Sánchez’s offensive approach seems to be leaving the team overly exposed defensively. Finding the right balance is the challenge facing the Costa del Sol team, which will host Tamaraceite this Sunday at Muñoz Pérez (12:00 p.m.)—curiously, one of the teams that has conceded the most goals in the group.

The upcoming match could be a good opportunity to start correcting that trend, but it will also be a real test against an opponent that is well aware of the difficulties the Estepona team is facing. Because goals conceded aren’t just a number in the standings: they’re points lost, games that get complicated, and efforts that end up going to waste. CD Estepona needs to find a way to keep its goal secure as soon as possible. Otherwise, no matter how many goals they score, they’ll remain doomed to fight an uphill battle.

CD Estepona Fans | The Voice of the Fans