November 20th 2023
INAKI Fernandino-Soto has been added to the Nairn County squad following a successful trial period. The 30-year-old – more commonly known as Zola – has featured for the club in the last three matches, debuting as a substitute against Huntly and starting the fixture against Forres Mechanics as well as Saturday's 4-1 win over Buckie Thistle. Fernandino-Soto was on trial with the club two years ago and spent last season with Strathspey Thistle having also played in the Highland League with Clachnacuddin. The Spaniard spent seven years in the Valencia CF Academy as a youngster back in his home land and has penned a deal at Station Park until the end of the season. Manager Ronnie Sharp said: "We have been looking for another left-sided player for a while and Zola is one who really fits the bill." "He can play in a couple of different positions, which gives us flexibility and frees up the likes of Cohen Ramsay and Kenny McKenzie to play elsewhere." "I worked with Zola previously when I coached the under-20s squad at Nairn and he trained with us for a few months. You can see straight away that he is a very good player technically from the grounding he has had. He might not be the biggest but he also gets stuck in on the defensive side as well and is not shy of a tackle." Sharp added: "Zola asked if he could come and train with us back at the start of October. He took a few weeks to get himself up to speed but he has taken his chance in the team to earn himself a deal and it is now up to him to kick on from here and establish himself." Graeme Macleod
