Valencia Manager Ruben Baraja has overseen a good start to the season, with three wins from their opening five, including a 3-0 victory against Atletico Madrid. Few are questioning his decisions, but the situation of Hugo Guillamon remains one that continues to puzzle fans.
Guillamon, who came through the academy and was in Luis Enrique’s Spain squad for the World Cup last November, has been eased out of the side since Baraja returned to the club.
During the final stretch of last season, Guillamon played just 7 minutes in their final game, missing nine straight matches. One one occasion, Guillamon wsa dropped from the squad entirely. Despite the fact that Guillamon has seen just 10 minutes of action in their opening five matches this campaign, Baraja told Superdeporte that he still relies on him.
“He trains well, he knows the club, he understands what the team needs, he has a good attitude. He is a player we rely on. He came later and at the beginning in some situations we tried to reinforce the middle of the pitch with Diakhaby.”
Baraja then highlighted that all players in the Valencia squad are important.
“The squad is short. We’re relying on everyone, we have to try to have everyone very focused because we need them to feel involved. The squad is short and with several injuries, everyone has to be ready.”
This tends to be a stock answer for players that are not getting game time, yet it remains no clearer why Baraja trusts him so much less than previous Valencia coaches. While results remain solid, Baraja won’t have to answer too many questions about it.
