Castellón Edge Past Real Sociedad B in Season Opener
Castellón claimed a narrow victory away to Real Sociedad B at the Estadio Ciudad Deportiva Subieta on Friday evening, securing a 1-0 win in the first round of Segunda División's regular season. The visitors took the lead early through O. Camara, who found the net in the seventh minute and kept the result from being overturned. It was a result that reflected the table positions going into the fixture, with Castellón sitting atop the standings and Sociedad B languishing in thirteenth.
The goal came quickly, and to be fair, Castellón made the most of that opening. Camara's strike was the only chance of real quality on either side, and the statistics back that up. The visitors created four big chances compared to none for the hosts, while their expected goals figure of 1.45 told a different story to the final scoreline. Sociedad B managed just one shot on target all evening, and their 0.22 expected goals were barely a reflection of the pressure they applied.
By then, Castellón had settled into their rhythm, controlling 59 per cent of possession and launching 109 attacks against 75 for the hosts. They completed 440 passes compared to 265, and their 11 key passes versus three showed they were finding space where it mattered. Sociedad B pressed higher and made 22 tackles to 16, but their 25 clearances matched the visitors, suggesting they spent more time defending than they would have liked.
The match grew chippy as the minutes added up, with yellow cards landing on both sides. Jon Garro and Diego Barri saw cards for Sociedad B, while Adam Jakobsen, Íñigo Cordoba, Unax Agote and Jari Vlak joined the list for Castellón. The referee was busy, but the game never quite became a brawl, even though both teams seemed eager to disrupt each other's flow.
Substitutions came thick and fast after the break, with Sociedad B making three changes around the hour mark and Castellón responding with their own adjustments. The visitors brought on Álvaro in the eighty-seventh minute, while the hosts shuffled their pack with changes for G. Carrera and G. Gorosabel. Neither manager seemed entirely satisfied with what they had, though Castellón had little need to chase the game.
The result leaves Castellón on ten points from four games, still top of the pile, while Sociedad B remain on five points after four matches. It was not a game that promised much, but the visitors took what they needed and ended a barren spell against this opposition. Cup football has its own rules, but this was league football, and the points mattered more than the performance.
