Overview
- Celta drew Sporting Braga in a preseason friendly on July 20 after roughly a week of training, with the team showing a renewed high press especially in the first half.
- Head coach Claudio Giráldez kept his 3-4-3 possession framework but publicly stressed a push to regain greater aggressiveness and intensity when pressing.
- Sporting Braga scored multiple goals from corners, prompting the staff to identify dead-ball defending as a priority and to entrust set-piece work to coach Alberto Suárez.
- Young players improved their stock: midfielder Hugo Burcio stood out for his physicality and ball work and forward Hugo González scored, boosting both players' chances for first-team minutes.
- Iván Villar did not play and now faces an uncertain role as the club evaluates goalkeeping options, while positional tests such as Hugo Álvarez at pivot and Álvaro Núñez as a central were used to probe squad depth ahead of the season.