The season is over. The table reads 10th, 46 points, a negative goal difference. For a club with European ambitions, that is not good enough. But this week, as Real Sociedad fans glanced away from San Sebastián toward the international stage, the brightest signal of the future wore a Spain shirt.
Jon Martín Arrives
Jon Martín made his senior Spain debut on Thursday, the culmination of a campaign that reordered Real Sociedad's defensive hierarchy. Thirty-two appearances for La Real this season. Duje Caleta-Car, Aritz Elustondo, and Igor Zubeldia, all seasoned professionals, found themselves behind a 20-year-old in Matarazzo's pecking order (8). That is not a development project. That is a takeover.
Martín is contracted through 2029, and his trajectory points in one direction only. The challenge for Real Sociedad is making sure that direction remains Anoeta and not a Champions League contender with deeper pockets. The vultures are already circling (8).
Get the next Real Sociedad brief by email
This article went out to subscribers as a brief. Get the next one straight to your inbox, free.
Free · No spam · Unsubscribe anytime
Óskarsson: The Price of Excellence
Orri Óskarsson was the men's team's revelation, a striker who finished clinically in a side that too often laboured to create. Now comes the inevitable consequence: a €40 million valuation and concrete interest from abroad (7).
Ten goals from open play? That kind of efficiency is rare and rarer still at a club that finished mid-table. Losing him would hurt doubly, not just the goals, but the sense that every good thing La Real produces must eventually be sold. The club has built its identity on development. There is a fine line between a development club and a selling club, and a €40 million Óskarsson departure blurs it.
Goalkeeper Shuffle
Álex Remiro's time as the undisputed number one appears to be ending. Matarazzo is already selecting his replacement (5), and Fulham's Steven Benda, currently on loan at Feyenoord, has surfaced as a target (6).
Replacing a goalkeeper is the most thankless task in squad building. One mistake and the entire defensive structure wobbles. Remiro brought stability for years. His successor inherits that burden, and the list of candidates is growing (11).
The 42-Man Problem
Director of football Erik Bretos faces a squad of 42 players that must be trimmed ruthlessly. Twenty-seven are contracted through 2029 or beyond, which provides stability but also handcuffs, you cannot easily move on underperformers tied to long deals.
Arsenal Zakharyan has scored three goals in three years (4). Aihen Muñoz enters the final year of his contract with no resolution in sight (1). Decisions on both are no longer optional. The market agenda now includes two additional candidates (11), suggesting Bretos is not waiting to see who leaves before lining up replacements.
Pre-season begins 4 July at Zubieta. Internationals will be absent, including Takefusa Kubo, who remains Japan's attacking fulcrum (10). The first friendly is set for 18 July against Racing, a clash of recent cup winners that will offer an early gauge of Matarazzo's evolving setup (9).
Looking Ahead
This is a pivotal summer. The women's team has secured a Champions League qualifying berth after a historic 2–0 win over Atlético Madrid, raising standards across the entire club. The men's side must respond.
Three things to track: Óskarsson's future, the Remiro succession, and the pace of squad trimming. If Bretos gets the goalkeeper decision right and Martín stays, the spine holds. If not, 10th place could start looking like a target rather than a disappointment.
