The paradigm shift behind Puado's renewal

BarcelonaIt's not yet official, but it will be very soon: Javi Puado will renew his contract with Espanyol. After months of uncertainty and rumors, the Blue and Whites' second captain, whose contract expires on June 30th and who has been free to negotiate his future since January 1st, will remain linked to the club of his life. He has had no shortage of offers, but neither Sevilla nor Real Sociedad nor the petrodollars from Saudi Arabia have convinced Espanyol's top scorer, hero of last season's promotion and of the agonizing permanence of this year, sealed with a goal and an assist from the Barcelona striker against Las Palmas.

His renewal, crucial for the technical secretariat, represents an emotional blow that cushions the impact of the exit to Joan Garcia's city rivalEspanyol's other great idol. To make it happen, Espanyol has made a significant financial effort, offering the Catalan striker a contract commensurate with his footballing prominence on the pitch, making him the highest-paid player in the squad and a key player in the club's project. The 57 goals he has scored in 211 matches for the blue and white shirt since his debut justify the offer to the striker, who has waited to find out what division Espanyol would play in and their sporting intentions before accepting it.

This season, he has scored 12 goals and assisted on four others, contributing to Espanyol's continued presence in the First Division, which is essential to ensure the financial viability of the Perico club. Also important is the budgeted sale of a player worth at least €15 million. That of the Sallent goalkeeper. And the capital increase by owner Chen Yansheng for almost €38 million, which should be approved next Friday, June 27, during the Extraordinary General Shareholders' Meeting and which will clean up the club, allowing it to return to the 1:1 rule. fair play La Liga. Also to be added is the reduction in salary bill as a result of the departure of players on loan and whose contracts are coming to an end.

Three markets without investment in signings

With all this, Espanyol has the financial leeway to undertake transactions like Puado's and has the liquidity to access the market. But having the capacity doesn't mean having the will to do so. It depends entirely on Chen, whom Fran Garagarza and Manolo González publicly urged to make an effort to renew the striker's contract and invest to strengthen the team after three transfer windows without investing a single euro. And that's what they're doing. The agreement with the Blanquiazul's top scorer, a "a parakeet to the core" who at 27 is in his prime as a footballer, confirms the paradigm shift.

This doesn't mean that Espanyol is going all out or that the days of plenty are back, when they spent millions on players like Vargas, De Tomás, or Embarba. In fact, the club has already announced the arrival of three players at zero cost - Hugo Pérez, Marcos Fernández, and Miguel Rubio - and will soon confirm two more: José Salinas and Kike García, a veteran attacker who has just scored 13 goals for relegated Alavés.

All these operations are part of the restructuring low cost from the squad that Fran Garagarza has been working on for some time. In his two years as sporting director, Chen has only dug deep into his pockets to sign Salvi Sánchez and Pere Milla (the total transfer fee for both transfers is around three million euros), two summers ago. Currently, he's mainly signing young, free players from the lower divisions and hungry to shine in La Liga, as the money, which will come in dribs and drabs, will be used to cover very specific needs, such as strikers and goalkeepers. The priority is to replace Joan Garcia and ensure the continuity of Roberto Fernández, who is owned by Sporting Braga.