Betis as a feeder club

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well so much for wanting to stay and help Real Betis secure promotion. The latest word over the weekend is that Ricardo Oliveira has signed for UAE club Al Jazira for ₤12million. And if you think the name of the club looks familiar, that’s because it is the same club that signed Rafael Sorbis from Betis last year. It looks as though Betis is becoming to look like a feeder club for the riches of the Arabs…

In a way though there is no blame attached to the Brazilians. There are those of course who claim that Betis fans will not forgive Oliveira for his latest actions but what he said was enlightening. To say that Oliveira moved for the money is accurate to a degree for it is hard to deny the man a paycheck that could help to secure his family’s future but to me the thing that struck was how he claimed that “this is an offer that will benefit Betis and Zaragoza also made a lot of pressure for the deal to go through”.

Lest we forget, Zaragoza still owns 50% of the player and it is not inconceivable that both clubs sold Oliveira on simply to fill up their own coffers…and if you consider Lopera’s past record, this is totally consistent with his nature. Still on my part (at least as a Betis fan), there is no animosity going towards Oliveira – I will always remember how his return was the spark that brought us that precious win over Seville last season – in my mind the one shining light of what was a dismal season.

And as I am writing this (and have mentioned earlier), there should be more departures as Betis seeks to cut the wages of the high end stars that they can no longer afford to keep. So it comes as no surprise to learn that both Mark Gonzalez and Emana have missed training recently (reportedly on purpose to force moves to other clubs). Their behaviour may be lamentable but their intentions are totally understandable. As it is, I have already discounted their involvement in the new Betis that I hope to see this season as they begin their fight back to respectability.

On the other hand, Oliveira’s departure has seemingly created a link between the two clubs where there were none earlier – in a way it almost seems as if Al Jazira has become our Arabic cousins. So I thought this might be a good forum to share some background information with Betis fans.

Here are some background information about Al Jazira to get you up to speed.

This Abu Dhabi based club is actually owned by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a member of the same family who bought over Manchester City and who are now financing the transfer revloution that is sending shockwaves throughout Europe. Yet the word is that it is Al Jazira and not the Sky Blues of Manchester who really captures his heart.

Boasting top class facilities and infrastructure, Al Jazira matches up to any club anywhere in the world but they have not won any major honours despite their riches. Led by Brazilian Abel Braga (who led Internacional to the Copa Libertadores and the Club World Cup), they have never been national champions but were runners-up in the last two seasons with last year’s one point gap behind the champions being the most heartbreaking.

Still the club boasted the best attacking combination in the whole UAE last season with the partnership of Sorbis and Fernando Baiano scoring 35 goals in all competitions. However this partnership broke apart when Baiano rejected a two year deal and decided to join rival club Al Wahda after Al Jazira turned down his demands for a three year contract.

The purchase of Oliveira is the result of Baiano’s defection – Al Jazira hopes that the hitman will establish a similar understanding with Sorbis but that may not happen at the start of the season as the latter has been ruled out for the first half of the campaign. Oliveira instead looks set to partner the speedy Ivorian forward Toni, with Sorbis only expected to return to action in December after suffering a knee ligament injury in May.

I will be keeping a close eye on Betis’s alumni strikeforce as well as on the club in the coming weeks and months ahead so stick to this blog to find out more if you are interested (as I am) on the developments on football in the Gulf state…

Category: Real Betis Team News

Tags: Real Betis Team News

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