Gaizka Garitano Returns to Ipurua: A Legend Walks Back Into the Building
Eibar host Cádiz on Sunday in a Segunda División clash made special by one man: Gaizka Garitano, returning to Ipurua for the first time since 2023.
Sunday’s Segunda División fixture between Eibar and Cádiz is one of those games that looks routine on paper but carries a proper emotional weight underneath. The reason? Gaizka Garitano is coming home.
The Prodigal Gaffer
Garitano, now in charge of Cádiz, will set foot on the Ipurua turf for the first time since he managed his final match there as Eibar boss — the first leg of the 2023 promotion play-offs against Alavés. That game ended level, but it wasn’t enough, with Alavés winning the return fixture 2-0 at Mendizorroza to end Eibar’s hopes. A painful send-off, as it goes.
Since then, Garitano has had stints at Almería (in La Primera, so no Eibar reunion there) and now Cádiz. He’s actually faced his former club twice already since taking charge in Andalusia — but both times at the Carrasco. Sunday is different. Sunday is Ipurua.
What Those Previous Meetings Looked Like
- Last season: The Cádiz vs Eibar clash at the Carrasco ended all square
- This season: Cádiz nicked it by the narrowest of margins in what was reportedly one of Eibar’s best away performances of the campaign
So Garitano knows how to get a result against his old lot. Beñat San José and his Eibar side will be well aware of that.
More Than Just the Manager
It’s not only Garitano making the trip down memory lane. His long-time assistant Patxi Ferreira is also in the Cádiz dugout, and he’s another figure held in genuine warmth by the Eibar faithful. The pair were central to what the club describes as a historic double promotion, and in their second spell they came agonisingly close — finishing just a point off automatic promotion in each of their two seasons, then falling short in the play-offs both times as well.
Fair to say they left everything on the pitch.
A Legend, Even If He Wouldn’t Call Himself One
Garitano is, by all accounts, the sort of bloke who’d rather disappear into the background than have a fuss made over him. He’s not going to be lapping up any standing ovations or milking the moment. But when that Cádiz coach pulls up at Ipurua and he steps off — walking through the corridors he knows inside out — it’s going to be a moment, whether he likes it or not.
He had his critics during that second spell, no question about it. When results weren’t going the way the fans wanted, the knives came out a bit. That’s football, innit. But nobody with any sense can deny what the man means to this club.
Why It Matters
- Garitano is widely regarded as one of Eibar’s all-time great managers
- His connection to the club’s most successful era is undeniable
- Sunday represents the first time he’s returned to Ipurua in any capacity since leaving in 2023
- Ferreira’s presence alongside him adds another layer of nostalgia
For the neutral, this is a lovely subplot to a mid-table Segunda scrap. For anyone with Eibar in their plates, it’s going to be a proper emotional afternoon — whatever the scoreline ends up being.