Eder Sarabia: The innovator of the Spanish League seeks to prove his old club wrong

After three seasons at Gerard Pique’s Andorra club, Eder joined second-tier side Elche on an initial one-year deal.

The club returned to La Liga after a two-year hiatus, extending his contract until June 2027.

Despite a recent stumble that has seen his side lose two games and draw one in their last three matches, Sarabia’s Elche side have shown that their innovative, adaptive and attacking style should be more than enough to stay ahead.

Some promoted clubs tend to defensively launch themselves into survival mode rather than staying in it. But this will not happen with Elche.

If they want to go straight back – which seems unlikely at the moment – they will at least take a swing, play their own brand of football, and stay true to the Sarabia ethos: making the fans happy.

“We have a general idea and a model, but we never play the same way,” he says.

Central to his ideology is a non-negotiable demand that players be honest in the way they compete.

“In Basque, there’s the word ‘gatura’. There’s no exact translation, but it’s like being a good, honest person and doing it the right way,” he explains.

“Not everything is easy as long as you win. That’s a defining characteristic and something my father instilled in me – football is for smart people, but not for cheaters.”

Sarabia believes that football should be about more than just results, wins or dealings in the transfer market – and should instead focus on the well-being of the club.

“I’m thinking about the club’s growth in the short and long term,” he says.

He added: “If I stay for life, that’s great, but if I stay for six months or three years, I want to leave a legacy so that the club continues to grow and improve.”