The Present
José Bordalás is one of the most famous managers in LaLiga, mostly because of his tactics, style of play and his ability to achieve positive results, which might seem boring and unethical to the average football fan, but in reality, José Bordalás has mastered the ability to maximise his chances to win.
It’s hard for smaller teams to compete against footballing giants like Real Madrid and FC Barcelona, but José Bordalás doesn’t make excuses and makes the most out of the players he has available. His gameplan consists of making his opponents uncomfortable by not allowing them to utilise the midfield. As soon as an opposing midfielder receives the ball, three or four Getafe players swarm him and either win the ball back or foul him, ultimately cutting off any sort of momentum. The less time midfielders are on the ball, the fewer chances they can create.
Getafe force their opponents to either play through the flanks or play long balls over their defensive line, which mostly amount to uncompleted passes. They’re most comfortable when defending high crosses or set pieces, due to their aerial and physical dominance. This is the reason José Bordalás gets criticised, as people insinuate that his style is too defensive and outdated.
On the other hand, a lot of people praise him for the amazing results he’s achieved using these tactics. Today we’re going to take a deeper dive into just how good his time at Getafe has been.
First Stint (2016-2021)
When he first took over Getafe, they had just been relegated to the second division and were looking for someone to save them from having to endure multiple seasons in second division. José Bordalás came to the rescue, as he achieved promotion back to LaLiga in his first season at the club.
He then placed eighth in the league in his first season back in the top division of Spanish football, which was an incredible result, as most newly promoted sides struggle to even avoid relegation again.
The 2018/19 season was Getafe’s best season in history, as they achieved a record 59 points in the league, battling for a place in the Champions League until the last Matchday, but ultimately falling just short. They finished fifth, qualified for the Europa League and reached the Copa del Rey quarterfinals.
In the following season, they finished eighth in the league and managed to reach the round of sixteen of the Europa League, which were very good results for their standards, but in the 2020/21 season, they finished 15th in the league. This was José Bordalás’ worst season at the club, and he ended up leaving for Valencia at the end of the season.
Second Stint (2022-present)
José Bordalás returned to a poor Getafe side on the 29th of April in 2023 and proceeded to save them from relegation, winning 11 out of a possible 21 points. His last two seasons haven’t been the best, but he’s managed to make Getafe an established mid-table team. This season Getafe are currently eighth in the league, after having had an inconsistent start to the season.
How good has he really been?
Even though some people might not like his style of play, it’s undeniable that it helps his teams achieve positive results and as he himself once famously said: “Esto es fútbol, Papá”. In conclusion, José Bordalás is arguably the best manager in Getafe’s history and his accomplishments for the club shouldn’t be overlooked.
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