Lab of Metrics: UD Almería’s final stretch in Marbella
With 3 weeks to go, Rubi’s side leans on data and detail as summer pre-season hits its decisive phase
UD Almería have entered the final sprint of their summer preparations in Marbella, with just 3 weeks remaining until the 2025/26 LaLiga curtain-raiser on Monday, 18 August. The Rojiblancos continue to squeeze every drop of value from their training camp, blending intense sessions with vital friendlies, and every moment is being dissected in the Club’s high-performance 'laboratory' of quantitative and qualitative data.
Following a packed weekend featuring back-to-back exhibition games against Málaga CF and Al-Jazzira Club, UD Almería now gear up for 2 final tune-ups: against Marbella FC this Thursday (KO 9:30am CEST) and Águilas FC on Sunday evening (KO 7:30pm CEST). These fixtures represent the last chances for experimentation before the work becomes more tactical, with the final couple of weeks pivoting towards full competitive readiness.
Unfortunately, the only blot on the pre-season thus far is the injury to Bruno Iribarne, whose condition remains under assessment.
Nothing escapes the coaching staff’s radar. Every training drill and match scenario is monitored through a lens of performance science. From GPS-tracked positioning data and high-intensity running metrics, to game intelligence captured on video. Each piece contributes to a clear picture of individual and team progress. These analytics fuel decisions about workload, positioning, recovery and tactical nuance.
Video clips from the friendlies are broken down in forensic detail: the cohesion of centre-backs, the timing and depth of overlapping runs as well as the spatial awareness of attackers probing for openings. It is all part of the process to embed both defensive and attacking principles. The coaching staff, led by Rubi, act as clinicians prescribing tactical 'medication' based on hard evidence and delivering it in the simplest possible terms to the players.
With the Marbella camp concluding this Thursday, UD Almería will return to familiar surroundings to fine-tune preparations for the new campaign. But before then, there is still data to be gathered, lessons to be learned and match minutes to be clocked up. The machines will keep whirring, the videos rolling, and the coaches refining since every metric is a step closer to being ready for day one.