Blackpool have snapped up former Barcelona B winger Edu Oriol, following twin brother Joan who joined the Seasiders earlier this summer.
In what has been a troubling few months for the Bloomfield Road club, they were so short of numbers in pre-season that they were forced to name five trialists during a friendly clash at Penrith. This followed their decision to cancel a planned tour to La Manga, as head coach Jose Riga was down to just eight players in his first team squad.
This has unsurprisingly had an adverse effect on their Championship campaign, and they have begun with successive defeats at Nottingham Forest and at home to Blackburn Rovers. They have, though, at least managed to bolster their squad with a number of new arrivals, the latest of which, subject to international clearance, is 27-year-old Oriol.
“I am very happy to be here, for me and my twin it is the best dream to play here,” Oriol, who has signed a 12-month contract with the option of a further year, told the official club website. “Now it is about working hard and starting to win. The style in England is physical so maybe I need more preparation. But I have confidence in my technique and character as a player.”
Oriol, whose twin brother Joan linked up with Blackpool earlier this month, played 60 times for Barcelona’s B side from 2009-2011. Upon leaving the Catalan giants he spent two years with Real Zaragoza, before moving to Azerbaijan for a brief spell with Khazar Lankaran, and earlier this year, he scored five goals in 18 league matches for Cypriot outfit AEL Limassol.
