Guest Piece by Zach Lowy
On June 23, 2024, Espanyol edged Real Oviedo 2-0 in the promotion playoffs. With Javi Puado scoring two goals on the cusp of halftime, Los Pericos were able to overcome a 1-0 deficit from the first leg and secure an immediate return to the top-flight. Whilst thousands of supporters poured into the streets to bask in the spectacle, sporting director Fran Garagarza had little time to celebrate their promotion to La Liga. They had dropped down to the Segunda a year earlier with practically the same backline – if Espanyol were going to avoid another relegation, they needed to bring in a superior defender.
Enter: Marash Kumbulla.
Born in Peschiera del Garda, Italy to Albanian parents, Kumbulla made his way through the youth ranks at Hellas Verona’s academy before eventually breaking into the first team under current Southampton manager Ivan Juric in the 2019/20 season. He emerged as a key figure on the left side of defense, helping them finish ninth in their return to Serie A, and earning the interest of various top clubs. However, it was Roma who won the race for him and signed him on a two-year loan with a €30m obligation to buy, with Mert Cetin, Matteo Cancellieri, and Aboudramane Diaby heading the other way.
Kumbulla was able to hone his skills under Paulo Fonseca and Jose Mourinho and even won the maiden edition of the UEFA Europa Conference League, but his playing time took a turn for the worse in the 2022/23 season. It reached a nadir on April 29, 2023, with Kumbulla suffering an ACL injury against Milan. He would have to wait another 10 months before returning to the football pitch, only this time, with Sassuolo. Kumbulla registered just seven appearances during his loan spell, but he was unable to keep them afloat in the top-flight. In need of a fresh new start, Kumbulla elected to leave Italy for the first time in his life and head to Spain, joining Espanyol on loan for the 2024/25 season.
Lo soñé así: primer gol con estos colores ante nuestro público. Una emoción que llevaré conmigo para siempre. 🤩
Tres puntos más, ¡vamos Pericos! 💪⚪️🔵 pic.twitter.com/W4RHhzSySg— Marash Kumbulla (@KumbullaMarash) October 5, 2024
“I had a lot of other teams interested in signing me, but after speaking with the club’s coach and director, I immediately wanted to go to Espanyol,” stated Kumbulla in an RG interview. “They didn’t promise that I would play every game, but they made me feel very confident by the way they talked to me. At the beginning, I was a little afraid because this was my first time outside of Italy. However, after one week, it seemed like I had already been there for months.”
Instead of gradually being phased into the team, Espanyol manager Manolo Gonzalez elected to throw him into the deep end and start him in his first available match – a 1-0 defeat vs. Real Sociedad. It hasn’t taken long for him to evolve into an indispensable figures in Espanyol’s defence: he’s played 17 matches in all competitions, 16 as a starter, whilst 13 of them have seen him play the full 90.
Kumbulla has evolved into a mature, skillful defender in Spain’s top-flight, becoming far less rash and more measured on and off the ball – having received a booking in each of his first four matches, Kumbulla has been cautioned just three times since then – a 3-1 win vs. Celta de Vigo, a 0-0 draw with Osasuna, and a 2-0 defeat to Barbastro in the Copa del Rey. He’s formed a promising duo in central defence alongside Uruguayan veteran Leandro Cabrera, towering over defenders with his 6’4 stature and squeezing the opponent with his aggressive marking and fearless defending.
⭐️ ¡@KumbullaMarash en el 1⃣1⃣ 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮𝗹 de la jornada de @laliga!
📊 @WhoScored #RCDE https://t.co/a1ID2GdhIz— RCD Espanyol de Barcelona (@RCDEspanyol) October 7, 2024
Just like his footballing idols Thiago Silva and Giorgio Chiellini, Kumbulla is someone who never shies away from a fight and is capable of holding his own in physical duels. He’s remained poised and confident in high-pressure situations, leading Espanyol in clearances per game (5.0) and helping to distribute the ball out of the first phase of build-up and into advanced areas.
“In Espanyol, I’ve found an atmosphere where I only have to think about what’s happening on the pitch and can concentrate on every single detail, “ said Kumbulla. “I train every day to prepare myself for each game. After a year and a half of recovering from injury, I was a little bit in doubt, but now, I feel very good both physically and mentally. I finally feel like myself again as a footballer.”
At 24 years of age, Kumbulla has gone from surplus to requirements at Roma to essential at Espanyol. He’s delivering the same performances that saw him named as one of UEFA’s 50 men’s players to watch for 2021, excelling in defense and impressing against some of the finest attackers in LaLiga. Espanyol currently find themselves in the relegation zone with a mere 15 points from 18 matches, but in Kumbulla, they have a seasoned defender who might very well be the key to them avoiding relegation and staying up in Spain’s top-flight.
