CD Castellóns recent change in ownership has given them the economic potential for growth as a club to return to the top flight of Spanish football after an absence of more than 30 years.
Prior to owner Bob Voulgaris takeover of the club in 2022, Los Orelluts had spent nine out of 10 seasons in the third tier of Spain.
The investment from the new owner provided an instant impact, with the club quickly gaining promotion to La Liga 2, and not looking out of place.
The Greek-Canadian pro poker player gambled his way to wealth, using a data-driven approach to minimise the risk of betting.
He is carrying over that method in his ownership style, inspired by Brighton and Brentfords approach, how they rose from the lower leagues of English football to now achieving sustained success between the top half and European spots in the Premier League.
This data-driven approach, using different models to calculate the likelihood of different outcomes, allows Castellón to identify high-potential signings and sign quality players for low fees, thanks to the good underlying data.
This insightful approach doesnt only apply to players but also to the staff at the club.
Dick Schreuder was appointed for the start of the 2023/24 season after helping PEC Zwolle gain promotion to the Eredivisie, being attracted away from the top flight in Holland to join the third tier of Spanish football.
He was identified as a coach who aligns with how the club will be taken forward.
In his first season at Castellón, he dominated the league to achieve promotion to the second tier.
However, a bad spell of results led to his recent sacking, with assistant Johan Plat taking charge at this time.
Along with the managerial change, Castellón set out to become as strong as possible in all phases of play, which meant searching for a set-piece specialist.
Who better to appoint than Stuart Reid, who has a proven track record of helping sides such as Como and Blackburn to change their fortune in set plays by providing detailed analysis and new ideas to take advantage of set-piece opportunities.
This tactical analysis will delve into the tactics Castellón uses to optimise their set-piece routines.
We will also analyse how Reid has moulded a team capable of learning and utilising many different routines on a weekly basis, adapting the strategy based on the oppositions defence.
One constant in this set-piece analysis is their coordination and clarity in knowing which routine to use and when.
They also use screens to create space in targeted areas, creating an unopposed shooting situation.
We will examine what makes Castellón exciting to watch from set pieces and how they could become even stronger in the future.
Key Aspects Of Screen Effectiveness
What makes Castellón both an exciting and dangerous set-piece side is that the team has clear ideas, with every player aware of their role for each corner kick.
Every player has a specific role for each delivery to help create the goals.
The patterns are different from game to game, and predicting the routine before it happens is impossible, making it much harder to prepare for when defending corners.
While each player does not make a specific run during corners, there are clear roles that are used each time.
Castellóns biggest threat comes from their use of screens, which create space in and around the six-yard box.
They also use screens to create space for players to arrive in those areas ahead of their markers, with only one or two players attacking the target area.
The remaining players are used to attack different parts of the six-yard box to control rebounds and second balls.
Often, we can see the concept of screens in use in attacking corners, like in the video below:
— Footie Clips (@FootieClips) January 21, 2025
By consistently using screens, players are very used to the process of successfully executing the action.
The black zone is the target area, and the player highlighted in white is the intended recipient.
To create space for the attacker, the screener positions himself in the path between the attackers marker and the target area.
As the attacker begins his sprint, the screener adjusts his position to block the path, forcing the defender to slow down and change direction to avoid the screen.
The moment it takes to adjust the defenders run is enough for the attacker to arrive in the target area unopposed, ready to attack the ball.
In general, the Castellón players have been effective in timing and adjusting the angles of their runs and using screens to gain advantages over their opponents.
However, in some cases, it is clear that the players dont fully understand how to make the most of a screen.
Screens usually have one of two objectives:
- Prote
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