Dani Rodríguez’s early strike is the difference at Ciutat Esportiva Antonio Asensio as we overcame Sporting Gijón 1-0 on our return to the island following our pre-season training camp in Austria.
We started the stronger side despite a much-rotated team as Javier Aguirre looks to give as many players minutes, and our early dominance soon paid off as Dani Rodríguez latched onto Antonio Raíllo’s pass and produced a composed finish.
The goal changed the dynamic of the game as chances then became few and far between as we headed into the break with a slender lead.
The visitors came close to levelling matters after the restart, but with neither side able to produce anything of note for the remainder of the fixture, the biggest cheer from the 1,000 fans in the stands at our training ground was the return of Vedat Muriqi following his permanent signing.
Still undefeated so far this pre-season, we now face face Serie A side SSC Napoli on Sunday July 31 at 2030 CET in Castel di Sangro.
