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Diario Euskadi

Alavés Faces Real Sociedad in Anoeta Aiming to Strengthen Defense

Deportivo Alavés travels to Anoeta this Saturday to play against Real Sociedad in one of their toughest away matches of the season, with a focus on improving their defensive solidity.

Generic image of a soccer ball on grass, with a blurred goal in the background.
IA

Generic image of a soccer ball on grass, with a blurred goal in the background.

Deportivo Alavés faces one of its most challenging away fixtures in LaLiga this Saturday at Anoeta against Real Sociedad, arriving in good form after three consecutive unbeaten matches, with a critical need to improve its defense.

Deportivo Alavés is set to play one of its most difficult remaining LaLiga away games this Saturday at Anoeta. After achieving their first three-match unbeaten streak of the season, the white-and-blue team visits Real Sociedad at a good moment. However, Real Sociedad might have their minds somewhat distracted by the upcoming Copa del Rey final in La Cartuja.
The txuri-urdin squad might rest some of their key players across all lines to prevent potential injuries before facing Atlético de Madrid. This would undoubtedly be the best news for Glorioso, who cannot afford to be complacent given their narrow three-point lead over the relegation zone.
Despite being their Copa executioner at Mendizorroza, Real Sociedad brings good memories to Alavés for one main reason. Specifically, they were the last team unable to breach Antonio Sivera's goal in the domestic competition. More than four months have passed since that narrow victory at the Paseo de Cervantes stadium in early December 2025.
This is an eternity for the babazorro squad, which has gone 15 consecutive matchdays seeing their opponents score at least one goal. Shutting down their goal must be a priority to secure their permanence in the First Division as soon as possible, as Quique Sánchez Flores reiterated after the agonizing draw against Osasuna.
The arrival of the Madrid-born coach has boosted Alavés in several aspects of their game, but if there's one criticism to be leveled at the new coaching staff, replacing Eduardo Coudet, it's the nine goals conceded in the last four matches. Valencia and Celta each scored three, Osasuna managed two without doing anything extraordinary in attack, while Villarreal was the only team that struggled immensely to beat Sivera with Nicolas Pépé's missile into the top corner in the 98th minute.
As the matchdays progress, the reliability of the new white-and-blue defense, featuring three center-backs and two long wing-backs, needs to improve significantly to end the uncertainty surrounding their survival. It's worth remembering that during a period of the first half of the season, Alavés was the team with the fewest goals conceded in the First Division. However, issues such as FIFA's sanction on Facundo Garcés after the falsification of the Malaysia passport, Coudet's punishment of Moussa Diarra after his snub before the Copa match against Sevilla, the decline in Jon Pacheco's performance, or the late fitness of Ville Koski, who arrived injured in Vitoria during the last winter transfer window, have all played against the defensive stability of the Vitoria-based team.

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