How are the players affected?
We will wait until the last moment. We are very optimistic with the players who have joined training this week and we live in more positive moments in that we will be able to choose between all of them.
Four games without winning. They are worried?
It’s getting harder and harder to add. We enter the decisive stretch of the League, in the last third and all the teams are very clear about their objectives and needs. The demand is very high for everyone. Scoring is more difficult. We have lived through a point of excessive joy and conformism, of relaxation ahead of time. That has happened in the locker room, in the club and among the fans. It is time to return to reality. All troops must be recovered. It coincided that this section in which there was relaxation coincided with numerous casualties that conditioned us.
Do you put more value on the previous streak or this one?
They have been very difficult games with some very strange conditions. Statistics need to be contextualized. We have seen ourselves with more shots and arrivals so that the result was not what it was. Football has these things and gives us warnings. We always compete, but we always think we can compete better.
Will Arambarri make it to the match?
We are not going to force any player. The one who has a minimum annoyance will not play. With Mauro we could have squeezed the options in the previous game, but we prefer that the players reach one hundred percent.
Why do you think there has been relaxation in the locker room?
In the changing room a normal thing has happened for the human being. After being in a precarious situation you go to another good and comfortable one. There is a point of relaxation because the body and mind need to rest. We have paid the toll on the competition. We have not lost the essence or stopped competing, but a connection point was missing. The players are aware and they are going to give it.
Was the best thing about the last game the appearances of Iglesias and Gonzalo Villar?
I don’t like to personalize, but Juan Iglesias is an example for all those who play less. When a player comes out, that’s what we want. He left everything, he did some excellent numbers. He knew how to understand the game he had to play. In the case of Gonzalo, he is not having any luck in the games he has to play. I would love to find the time when Gonzalo gives us what he has, which is quality. We know what he can give us.
Return to the Coliseum. Extra motivation?
Goes to all teams. Every time we go away the games change and there is more from the rival. At home we feel comfortable and well. To compare with other teams, we need the fans to come, whom I thank from day one. In this final fight they will be very protagonists. The fans have been coming and hopefully they coincide. This next game has all the attractions and they finally put us in a decent hour. Hopefully we play it very wrapped up.
Have you asked your players things about Bordalás?
No. They know him perfectly, but I’m interested in the information about what happens on the pitch. We analyze their games and understand how they will want to surprise us and how they will want to play knowing how their coach is. Pepe has been in this for as many years as I have and by now we know each other.
Rarely do two coaches know the rival’s house so well.
Getafe knows that a coach who did an extraordinary job passed through their club and Valencia knows that I had a very extensive career as a player and as a coach. But we’re not going to be friends over the weekend. We will be staunch enemies and then maximum sportsmanship.
To what extent are fans important?
They are fundamental. We have to channel our emotions and the focus of the match with his help. Anything that is unconditional support supposes a very strong energetic force that helps the footballer. I’ve played many games as a professional and I know that even when you make a mistake, the energy from behind helps you rectify things and think positive. Environments push players and we want to share our effort with them.
What do you think of Bordalás’ style?
It is a style that I have always defended. I always said that I received disproportionate attacks on a style that I defend. A fierce, competitive and team style that collides. Everything is very consistent when you compete and the results prove you right. The most important thing is to know what team you have and from there to look as much like your players as possible. I am managing the same players. We have a similar view of the squad here.
Hugo Duro is on loan. Do you see him with options to return?
It’s hard. I don’t make those assumptions. I see him as a rival, a player who will hurt us if he can. We will have to be careful because he is a player who is in a good moment.