Goal takes a look at the career of Hyderabad’s midfield general…
Lluis Sastre is expected to pull the strings at the centre of the park for Hyderabad FC in the upcoming season of the Indian Super League (ISL).
The Nizams have made wholesale changes to the squad and have roped in six new foreigners.
Sastre is a dynamic midfielder who likes to sit deep and dictate the tempo of a match. Let’s take a closer look at the forward who has immense experience of playing in the Spanish second division.
Jersey Number: 6
Youth Career and Professional Debut
Lluis Sastre was born in Majorca of the Balearic Islands. He is a product of FC Barcelona‘s famed youth setup La Masia. He joined the Blaugrana academy in 1998 at the tender age of 13. Till 2005, he was plying his trade for various age group teams of Barcelona until he was promoted to Barcelona C. He scored six goals for the side and was rewarded with a promotion to Barcelona B in 2006.
In 2007, it was understood that he will not be promoted to the senior squad and he chose to secure a deal to Real Zaragoza. But very soon, he was loaned out to Huesca where he would make his professional debut against CD Castellon in a 2-2 draw. He became a key figure at Huesca and helped the side gain promotion to the Second Division which prompted them to sign him permanently.
La Liga & Segunda Division Exploits
Sastre continued to flourish at Huesca. He stayed there for four seasons and made 110 appearances. He became an absolute fan favourite with his assuring displays at the centre of the park, but when the opportunity came to play in La Liga with Real Valladolid he could not turn down the offer.
In 2012, he joined Valladolid and made his La Liga debut against Zaragoza in a 1-0 win. But his most memorable match will be against Real Madrid where he scored a late goal against the Spanish giants. A screamer from outside the box that beat Diego Lopez. Although his side was beaten by a narrow margin, Sastre had a good game going up against the likes of Luka Modric and Kaka in midfield.
In his second season, Valladolid was relegated to the Segunda Division but the midfielder chose to stay on and fight for promotion. At the end of his contract, he joined fellow second division side Leganes and in his first season, he helped Leganes gain promotion back to La Liga. He made 33 appearances and scored three goals during the campaign.
In 2017, he joined Huesca once again and it was termed as his ‘homecoming’. In the next season, he helped Huesca gain promotion to La Liga, becoming a key figure under Juan Antonio Anquela. It was for the third time that he had helped a side to qualify for the top division from the Segunda.
Last Stint
In January 2019, he moved to Cyprus to join AEK Larnaca FC. He made 26 appearances for the Green-Yellows in two seasons and after ending his contract in the summer of 2020, he joined Hyderabad FC on a free transfer.
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