Salomon Rondon and his difficult start at a struggling Real Oviedo
Jose Salomon Rondon left Pachuca with the intention of maintaining a good level in Spain. At Real Oviedo he has only scored two goals
Jose Salomon Rondon was a great signing for Pachuca in January 2024. The Venezuelan striker posted very good numbers in Liga MX and even won a Concacaf Champions League title. For this season, he decided to try his luck in Spain, but so far things haven't gone so well for him with Real Oviedo. Salomon Rondon's return to Europe wasn't going to be easy. This has been demonstrated in Real Oviedo's first few matches. In fact, in the club's first LaLiga game, Salomon missed a penalty in the opening minutes of a match they ended up losing 2-0 to Villarreal. So far, the Venezuelan striker has seen action in 15 of Real Oviedo's 16 matches this season. Salomon Rondon only scored one goal, against Valencia as a substitute, and another against Girona. But Jose Salomon Rondon isn't solely responsible for Real Oviedo's struggles. In fact, the South American striker has been one of the most committed players on the pitch. This explains his consistent performance. Real Oviedo's problem is collective: 7 goals in 16 matches (5 of them in two games). More generally, Real Oviedo is the team that has scored the fewest goals in all of LaLiga.
Salomon Rondon still belongs to Pachuca. His loan to Real Oviedo ends in June of this year. But both clubs belong to the Pachuca group, and if their management decides, Rondon could return to Mexico. The Venezuelan has a contract with Pachuca until December 2027.
Without Veljko Paunovic, in freefall
A low blow to Salomon Rondon's aspirations was the dismissal of Veljko Paunovic. The former Chivas de Guadalajara coach had placed a lot of faith in Rondon. In fact, in some LaLiga matches, the Venezuelan striker captained Real Oviedo. The problem is that in these circumstances, many are to blame, but only one is sacrificed and singled out. It was Veljko Paunovic, the manager who led Real Oviedo to the Spanish first division. His replacement was Luis Carrion.A coach who couldn't secure a single victory in nine matches. The problem wasn't the coach. Now Guillermo Almada is being hailed as Oviedo's "savior" in their fight against relegation.