MATCH PREVIEW: CD JÁVEA vs. CD OLÍMPIC

MATCH DETAILS

SUNDAY 26th NOVEMBER, 11.45am
CD Jávea vs. CD Olímpic
Campo d’Esport Municipal
Carrer del Molí de la Safranera
03730 Xàbia (Alicante)

CD Jávea will be looking to maintain a modest unbeaten run of two games after the solid 2-1 victory over fellow strugglers CD Thader last Sunday but it’s not going to be easy against a side that are one of the genuine contenders for a top three spot.

CD Olímpic held league leaders CD Eldense “B” to a goalless draw at La Murta last weekend and are now three games unbeaten, that run including their last visit to the Marina Alta two weeks ago when they beat club-in-chaos CD Dénia.

THE OPPOSITION

CD Olímpic de Xàtiva was formed in 1932 and became one of the dominant footballing sides in the region, spending almost three-quarters of its history in the national categories of the Third Division and Second Division B.

The club’s best campaign was the 1987-88 season when, under the guidance of future Real Madrid head coach Benito Floro, it finished fourth in Group 4 of the Segunda Division B, then the third tier of the Spanish football league pyramid.

CD Olímpic reached the Round of 32 of the Copa del Rey during the 2012-13 season, losing out to eventual winners Real Madrid 2-0 over the two legs, holding the Spanish champions to a 0-0 draw at home before conceding two goals in the capital.

The club returned to the Second Division B in 2011 and remained there for five seasons until suffering relegation back to the Third Division in 2016 after losing a play-off game for survival against SD Leioa from Group 2.

In May 2018, Dehli-based Sudeva Residential Football School acquired 85% of CD Olímpic as a means to provide overseas exposure to talented Indian football players from Sudeva FC. At the time of the purchase, chairman Anuj Gupta said that “we could not buy a club in the UK because most clubs are expensive there. We narrowed down to Belgium, Spain and Germany. Belgium and Germany would be very cold for our kids; so we chose Spain.” ¹

It hasn’t been plain sailing for the new owners. By 2022, the club was back playing regional football for the first time since 2009 and has been beset by financial problems. The club finished 4th in the Regional Preferente last season, missing out on the opportunity to make an immediate return to the national set-up but securing a place in the inaugural Lliga Comunitat.

PREVIOUS MEETINGS

Encounters between CD Jávea and CD Olímpic have been few, the clubs meeting just 14 times since the first match in December 1966 in Xàtiva which the hosts won 3-0; CD Jávea won the return 4-0 in April 1967, both games taking place in the Third Division.

The share of the spoils in that first season reflects the head-to-head record between the two clubs; of the 14 games played, the clubs have won six each and drawn the other two, each having done the double over the other just once, CD Javea in 1967/68 (2-0 at home & 1-0 away) whilst CD Olìmpic managed in during the 1994/95 campaign (5-0 at home & 1-0 away), the last season that CD Jávea played in the Third Division.

The last time we met
23/04/2023 – CD Jávea 2-1 CD Olímpic
In the match report, we described the encounter as “the perfect Sunday evening of football” as the rojiblancos rolled out 2-1 winners against a side struggling to maintain a slim chance of finishing in the top three. The Xàtiva side opened the scoring on 33 minutes through Javier Fuster before José Cabo pounced on a rebound off the post to smash home the equaliser right on the stroke of half-time. The winner arrived quite spectacularly on 69 minutes when Cabo pounced on an error in defence to ” smash home from outside the area for yet another contender for goal of the season”. ² The result lifted the rojiblancos to within a point of the top eight with four games remaining.

Link: MATCH REPORT

THIS WEEK’S FIXTURES