Zaragoza's survival hero demands total rebuild | OneFootball

When Gabi Fernández was unveiled as Real Zaragoza’s new manager midway through the campaign, plenty doubted the wisdom of his decision. Taking over a team sliding perilously close to the relegation places after Miguel Ángel Ramírez’s sacking, and abandoning relative stability at Getafe B, Fernández was cautioned by those closest to him not to get involved. Yet his ties to Zaragoza—the club that shaped his own playing career and later propelled him into the spotlight at Atlético Madrid—were too strong to ignore.

The realities he encountered in Aragón proved every bit as intimidating as the preachers of doom had warned. Zaragoza’s difficulties were not limited to low morale; at one point, the squad found themselves in the relegation zone, plagued by persistent shortcomings that winter recruitment failed to address. Opponents like Eldense staged late-season surges, and the team often appeared short on both confidence and solutions.

Navigating these choppy waters proved draining for Fernández. “I have suffered much more now as coach than I ever did as a player. This is taking years off my life,” he admitted in his typically candid fashion. The stress was clear, especially as narrow victories—among them vital wins over Racing de Ferrol, Cartagena, and Deportivo—provided only slim margins of safety. Ultimately, the missteps of others combined with these hard-fought results to secure Segunda División survival, sparing Zaragoza from a drop that had loomed over much of the season.

Fernández’s influence was most visible in the way he galvanised a dispirited squad. Although the football on display often fell short of expectations, he succeeded in restoring at least a measure of resolve, coaxing critical fight from his players during crunch moments. Still, the journey was far from smooth, and the gaps within the squad left little room for error. He described the project as a “poisoned chalice”—success would launch his managerial reputation, failure might have consigned him to a bitter footnote in club history.

Now, the manager faces another significant transition. Acknowledging that “if we want the club to keep competing and to aim higher, everything must be rebuilt from scratch,” Fernández has signalled the need for a deep overhaul to match the ambition of both fans and staff. The upcoming summer presents both a clean slate and considerable responsibility; Fernández not only wants stability, but dreams of guiding Zaragoza back to the top tier—“to where they belong.”

As the new chapter begins, Real Zaragoza will depend on whether the club’s leadership matches their manager’s clarity of purpose. For Fernández, returning was always about more than survival—it is about restoring pride and pursuing the next great leap.

Source: Marca