This Saturday saw Real Oviedo face Unionistas de Salamanca in the third-place playoff of the Trofeo Teresa Herrera, which was the final fixture of preseason. The match ended with Unionistas winning 4-2 on penalties.
Aarón; Lemos, Eze, Jaime Vázquez, Rahim; Castri, Sibo, Miguelez, Borja Sánchez; Álex Millán and Paraschiv made up Javi Calleja's starting eleven for the final encounter of preseason. In intense heat in Coruña, Los Azules were able to pick up further game time and workload as they prepare for the new campaign.
Unionistas did not leave a lot of gaps in their defence as Real Oviedo looked to threaten, with the main danger coming down the wings. Borja Sánchez went closest during the first half, trying to catch out former Real Oviedo Vetusta goalkeeper Marco, but the shot stopper tipped his effort over the bar for a corner. The two teams went in for halftime with the match still goalless.
Masca came on for Castri during the interval in an attempt to freshen up the left wing, and the Portuguese forward tried his luck from outside the box during the opening minutes of the second half. Real Oviedo dominated the ball, playing the majority of the encounter in the opposition half, and Álex Cardero, Dotor, and Lucas were the next substitutes to enter the fray. Álex Cardero and Masca would go closest to breaking the deadlock from a fine Sebas Moyano pass, but they were unable to convert. The match went to a penalty shootout, which saw Unionistas come out on top following two misses from Los Carbayones.
Javi Calleja's side has now brought an end to a demanding preseason campaign, having acquired a good atmosphere and a significant workload during these four weeks. Thoughts now turn to the start of the league campaign, which will see Los Azules travel to face Deportivo de La Coruña at Abanca Riazor on Saturday 17th August (kick-off 19:30).