David Costas the key inclusion in Oviedo squad to face Valencia | OneFootball

Real Oviedo have welcomed back David Costas for the visit of Valencia to the Carlos Tartiere, five weeks after his last outing, boosting a defence that had been stretched.

According to AS, Guillermo Almada has named the Galician centre-back in his squad, while Lucas Ahijado, Leander Dendoncker and Thiago Borbas remain out.

Costas had been halted by persistent discomfort during one of his best spells this season. He trained with the group at El Requexón and there had been talk he might make the Espanyol trip, but Almada opted to wait. With another week of work, he is now available to rejoin his team-mates.

Eric Bailly is also in full condition and offers another option, having travelled to Barcelona without featuring. With Javi López and Rahim contesting the left flank, the only piece missing for a complete back line is Lucas Ahijado, and Vetusta full-back Adri Fernández is included.

Almada could tweak the starting 11, with decisions on the wings after resting Ilyas Chaira and Haissem Hassan last time out.

The Uruguayan remains upbeat despite a challenging run, saying the side must convert encouraging performances into wins, starting against Valencia. He highlighted their quality across the pitch and stressed Oviedo will need total focus and to be close to perfection to take the points.

Source: AS