David Moyes Needs Reversal of Real Sociedad Fortune for Basque Derby

David Moyes can look back on his first month as Real Sociedad and pick out both highlights and lowlights. But the overall sheen on his start to life in San Sebastian will be determined by the result of Sunday's Basque derby.

If he can inspire La Real to victory over Athletic Bilbao on Sunday, then feelings will be positive.

Lose, and the story will have an entirely different spin and he will start to feel the heat.

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Nobody is saying that if Moyes is defeated by Los Leones at Anoeta that his position as manager will be under threat. The players, the board and the fans know that it will take time to get Real Sociedad back on their feet.

Their fall since they were in the Champions League last season, playing Moyes' United, has been steep.

But if Sociedad—on Saturday morning 14th in the table and three points off the drop zone—succumb to defeat, then fingers will be pointed and questions asked.

Why did the team fall apart against Villarreal? El Madrigal isn't an easy place to go, but conceding four goals in the final 30 minutes was a bizarre loss of concentration. 

Moyes spoke after the 4-0 defeat. Per Sport, he said: "We have to improve quickly. We have to compete better; we are disappointed with how we played when we had the ball. But I'm watching and analysing the team. We have to improve our level."

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His team have found it difficult to find the net, too. In three of the four games he has been in charge for, Sociedad haven't scored.

In the other, his home "debut" against Elche, Mexican hot-shot Carlos Vela netted a hat-trick.

Then there have been the well-documented moments he's struggled with the language. His detractors will use his extremely weak (read nonexistent) Spanish as a stick to beat him with.

A clip of him speaking Spanglish and struggling to find the Spanish word for "times," after he said "dos, tres, cuatro" went viral, with many people making fun of him unfairly because of it.

Perhaps less excusable was the video of him shouting "Stefano" at Esteban Granero during a game to try and get his attention.

He hadn't been at the club more than a few days, it's true, but there's not a single Stefano in the squad.

However, despite these mishaps, there have been positives, too.

The Real Sociedad that Jagoba Arrasate left behind looked flat, lifeless. That's not been the same since Moyes took over, with Vela looking particularly fired up.

With star man Antoine Griezmann jumping ship in the summer and joining Atletico Madrid, Vela is now the best player at the club. Moyes needs to help him shoulder that responsibility;

Despite the 4-0 hammering by Villarreal, the players have not let their heads drop.

Alberto De la Bella said, per Inside Spanish Football:

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I don't think the Villarreal result will have a negative influence on this weekend’s game – it’s a completely different match. Before Sunday we had been able to string together a decent run, taking seven points from nine; we've just suffered a severe defeat but we have to put it out of our minds because we have to take points from both of the games we have to play between now and Christmas. We have to give everything we've got in the derby – it’s an important game for us, for us fans and for Basque football and a victory would really give us a boost.

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Jonathan Coates of The Herald, a Scottish newspaper, observed that Moyes had been ramping up the intensity in training sessions according to local media. He wrote:

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Local press reports have described players as "bent over, gasping for breath" at the end of training sessions, while defender Carlos Martinez described him as "an imposing guy due to his prestige, physical presence and serious personality."

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With the players on his side, he can be a lot more inspiring than the departed coach, no matter how crushing his spell in charge of Manchester United was. There are no big names here that he can't control. This is much more like managing Everton than Manchester United.

The lessened pressure manifests itself in the way Moyes conducts himself. He has much more time for the press than he ever did with the Red Devils.

Both Moyes and Real Sociedad have been kind to the many English journalists who are interested in how things are going at Anoeta. There will be plenty of them there on Sunday night when La Real face their rivals.

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There is a bitterness between the two teams, if not the two cities. Athletic have always been the richer, more successful club in the region.

Athletic often try to poach Real Sociedad players because they only recruit Basque players.

Sociedad used to have the same policy, but with Athletic getting the pick of the bunch, after a long and hard-fought debate, they abandoned that in 1989, signing John Aldridge.

They occasionally install "anti-Athletic" clauses in their players' contracts which mean the Bilbao side need to pay a higher buy-out fee than any other team would have to.

Midfielder Ruben Pardo, for example, has a €30 million escape clause, but if Athletic want him, it would be €60m.

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With a win over Athletic in the derby, the atmosphere around Real Sociedad would receive a huge boost. That could then be magnified in January, if Moyes does any business.

He's interested in bringing Manchester United youngster Adnan Januzaj on loan from Old Trafford, per the Sunday Telegraph's Jason Burt.

A player like Januzaj would benefit from game time for a La Liga side but especially so if there is a positive vibe at the club.

If Moyes can inspire his team a victory against Athletic Bilbao, it won't just be San Sebastian's beautiful vistas that are looking rosy.