FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Football has twists and turns and wonderful moments. On December 16, the Pedro Escartín stadium will host the most important match in its history, and that is no exaggeration. CD Guadalajara will face FC Barcelona in the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey.
To understand the magnitude of the clash, we only need to look at the demographics. The city of Guadalajara (the Spanish one, not the Mexican metropolis) has a population of approximately 87,000 to 89,000. The capacity of the Camp Nou (before renovations) was 99,354 spectators. In other words, the entire city of Guadalajara, including the elderly and newborns, could sit in Barcelona's stadium and there would still be 10,000 empty seats.
Depor plays at Pedro Escartin, a stadium with a capacity of around 6,000 people (which they will try to expand to 8,500 for this event). It is one of the few stadiums in the world named after a referee (Pedro Escartin was a legendary referee, journalist and coach), something unique in a sport that usually honors presidents or goal scorers.
The economic differences are astronomical. While Lamine Yamal is worth close to £17m, even the "lowest" value player in Barca's current squad, goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny (£850,000), is four times more valuable than Guadalajara's most valuable asset: Manu Ramirez, valued at just £210,000 according to Transfermarkt.
But the contrast is more striking in salaries. A Barca reserve player, such as youngster Gerard Martin, earns around 1.56 million euros per year, which is equivalent to around 130,000 euros per month.
To put it in perspective: the average salary for a footballer in the Primera Federacion ranges between 3,000 and 5,000 euros per month. The math is brutal: Gerard Martin earns in a single month what a star player at Guadalajara would take more than two years to earn.
Despite the economic changes, Guadalajara is not an amateur team. They currently play in the Primera Federacion (3rd division), the same league that Barca Atlético played in before being relegated last season. They are not "friends who get together on Sundays"; they are professionals.
The team led by Pere Marti is coming off a historic season. In the 2024/25 season, they were crowned champions of Group V of the Second Division. They accumulated 74 points (the best record among all groups). Goalkeeper Amador Zarco conceded only 15 goals all season. Will he be able to stop Lewandowski and Yamal?
For the fans dressed in purple, this match is a karmic reward. In 2013, the club experienced its darkest moment. They were playing in the Second Division (LaLiga 2) and deserved their place on the pitch. However, the LFP decreed their administrative relegation from the category due to irregularities in a capital increase.
It was a "relegation". The players did their job, but the bureaucracy killed them. The club was on the verge of extinction in 2017, with millions in debt and constant changes of coaches. But they survived.
Lini një Përgjigje