Elche vs Levante preview - Rodas wants Caparros to stay

Posted Thursday, April 24, 2014 by PA

Levante defender Hector Rodas remains hopeful that coach Joaquin Caparros will sign a new deal to remain at the club next season.

Caparros is yet to a agree a new deal to remain in Valencia, despite ongoing negotiations with the Levante board.

The delay has come amid some discontent amongst the Levante fans that the club have not pushed on up the Primera Division table this term, after at one stage looking like they might finish ahead of their higher-profile city rivals Valencia.

Those expectations are in stark contrast to the expectations of the club only a few years ago - when they were on the brink financially and struggling in the second division - and youth-team product Rodas believes the fans should not forget the hard times.

"We should always be ambitious and we understand how demanding the fans are, but at the same time, we must be happy with another year in the Primera," he told a press conference.

"Just six years ago, at best we'd have about 2,000 people in the stadium and we were suffering to avoid relegation to the Segunda B."

The 26-year-old thinks Caparros should also be given his dues too, as a fifth successive top-flight campaign would be confirmed by victory at regional rivals Elche on Friday night.

"The manager has done a great job here," Rodas said.

"It's been a very hard season, especially when you take into account all the changes in the squad. Important players have left but still he's moved the squad forward.

"He's a winner, the players all depend on him and I really hope he stays."

Elche are just three points above the drop zone and face a difficult run-in.

Coach Fran Escriba believes his team must take something from Levante with games against Malaga, Barcelona and Sevilla to round out the campaign.

"Any result other than a win would make things complicated for us, because the next three games are very difficult ones," he said.

"Even if we have 38 points, our safety won't be guaranteed, so we'll have to get points from those games too.

"Winning on Friday will be very important."

Levante will be without skipper Juanfran and David Barral, both to suspension, while David Navarro is out with a hamstring injury.