Alaves Season in Review: Thank God that worked out – Football España

With the European season officially at an end, Football España will be reviewing each and every one of the La Liga sides and how they fared this season.

Results:

La Liga: 15th – 42 points

Copa del Rey: Second Round

Top Goalscorer: Kike Garcia – 15

Top Assister: Carlos Vicente – 6

Season Summary

Alaves looked themselves for the opening stage of the season; gritty, purposeful and hard to beat. Yet a long winless run for Luis Garcia Plaza saw him sacked in November, to the general bafflement of the public and press. In came Chacho Coudet, and while he did end their winless run in January, Alaves didn’t look much better in all honesty. The strong form of Kike Garcia saw Los Babazorros pick up some crucial wins in 2025 though, most notably hammering Real Betis away.

Coudet, previously associated with an up-tempo but overtly offensive style did adapt well though, and you could see his side battled for him down the stretch, in which ultimately, Alaves were not playing for survival on the final day of the season, meeting their objectives.

Verdict: B

It might have looked a little wobbly at times. Sacking Garcia Plaza seemed harsh at the time and with three months to go, Alaves fans were chanting his name in the stadium. He was their longest-serving manager in 21 years, and ending his two-year contract signed last summer did away with any illusions of stability.

Nevertheless, staying up is the name of the game at Mendizorrotza, and to Coudet’s credit, he came out the other side of that pressure with his objectives met and an Alaves that remain a tough nut to crack.

Player of the Season: Carlos Vicente

As difficult as it is to look beyond Garcia hitting double figures, Carlos Vicente is the man that embodies this Alaves. Much of their attack runs through him – and he runs through brick walls for their attack and defence. Memorably against Real Madrid, he was seen often at right-back defending Vinicius Junior before bombing back up the other end to take the fight to Fran Garcia.

Tiralo a fallar, toda la grada y Carlos Vicente marcando el penalti, la buena relación por parte de aficion entre Osasuna y Alavés querían meter al Osasuna en europa, pero un sivera DESLUMBRANTE y un Carlos Vicente anotando de penalti les dió el empate que no le sirvió de nada. pic.twitter.com/4fQioRAArD

— Fonceleste 🇪🇺 (@aspasenvena) May 26, 2025

Beyond the running though, he provides danger, with a strong shot, a delivery that defenders dread and strong old-fashioned wing-play. Five goals, six assists and plenty more points came from Vicente.

Pleasant Surprise of the Season: Santiago Mourino

It seems Alaves do a good trade in a target man and a centre-back. Signed from Atletico Madrid last summer, there is talk that he could head back there after becoming one of their standouts in the final months. Abdel Abqar, Rafa Marin and now Mourino are all in a similar mould, and that’s a good sign for the Uruguayan.

If only we could have had a bit more from: Tomas Conechny

Early on in the season, Conechny showed flashes of why he emerged in Argentina with a big reputation. Conechny has the guile and soft touch that Alaves don’t possess in spades, and if he could have found his form, it would have been transformative for an Alaves attack to have Vicente on one side, and Conechny’s wit on the other.

On the horizon, you see…

Probably something quite similar to this season in all honesty. There is no suggestion of a major shift in the playing squad, and they will have to work hard to replace the likes of Abqar, Mourino, and in particular, Garcia. When Samu Aghehowa’s loan move expired, Garcia was already starting ahead of him, and there was a clear plan – less so now.

Alaves will depend as much on their competition as themselves to stay up next year. This year Real Valladolid didn’t put up much of a fight, and it is fair to say that had Garcia been on Las Palmas’ or Leganes’ squads, then they might be back next year instead. With the veteran off to Espanyol, finding a goalscorer is top of their list.