Awaziem confident of Leganes' La Liga survival

Chidozie Awaziem is confident Leganes can avoid relegation from La Liga at the end of the season, following their 1-0 win over Espanyol on Sunday.

The Cucumber Growers have played six games without a victory before securing a hard-fought win at RCDE Stadium, a previous run of poor form which had left them in the drop zone.

Awaziem made a cameo appearance in the encounter after replacing Aitor Ruibal while his compatriot Kenneth Omeruo was not listed as Jonathan Cristian Silva scored the only goal of the game.

The victory against Francisco Rufete’s men has boosted the confidence of the 23-year-old Nigeria international that his side can maintain their Spanish top-flight status at the end of the campaign.

“I believe in the team 100%. The spirit the guys are putting in the team is massive and I believe we are going to achieve our aim and beat the drop,” Awaziem told AOI.

“We are trying our best game by game and we showed huge character today so hopefully we can maintain this and turn it around in our remaining games.”

With their win against Espanyol, the Cucumber Growers moved off the bottom of the league table to 19th spot after gathering 28 points from 34 games.

Awaziem, who has partnered his compatriot Omeruo in most of the campaign, will hope to make a return to the starting line-up when they take on Eibar on Thursday.

The centre-back joined the Estadio Municipal de Butarque outfit on a season-long loan move from Portuguese club Porto.

The defender has been with the Blue and Whites since 2014 but he has only played 10 league games for the senior side, having spent most of his time on loan.

Awaziem spent the 2017-18 season on loan with French side Nantes and then featured for Turkish Super Lig side Caykur Rizespor in the first half of the 2018-19 campaign.

The centre-back joined Leganes last summer and has made 27 appearances across all competitions for the Cucumber Growers.