LOPETEGUI: 'I'M NOT BEING OVER CAUTIOUS. THERE IS A LOT MORE POINTS TO BE PLAYED FOR'

23/03/2021

'They trust in what we are doing and we are delighted to have their confidence, but we need to keep convincing them,' Lopetegui answered when asked about his relationship with the president and Monchi

Sevilla FC manager Julen Lopetegui was interviewed this Tuesday afternoon on Radio Sevilla by Cadena SER. The coach made use of the international break to give a wide-ranging interview about the season. Lopetegui began by saying the team would be using these days to 'recharge their batteries and to get as many players back as possible. Five days go by very quickly and before you know it, you're playing again. Matches have always been demanding physically, they require a colossal effort and never before have so many matches been played in such a short space of time. And it's been even more difficult for us as we started the season even later than most other teams. Pushing players to the limit results in these niggles and injuries we've had this season. We will use the break to help the players get their energy back, and we are crossing our fingers for our players on international duty and who could play up to three games.'

Lopetegui was asked about the points advantage that the Blanquirrojos have in their hunt for Champions League qualification: 'The ten-point gap is not definitive. If you win you get three points so there could be a very different picture after only two games. We have a tough and demanding fixture schedule and we need to prepare ourselves mentally to achieve our goal. Qualifying for the Champions League is very difficult: in the last ten years it's only been done twice, once last year. That's the reality. We still have a lot of work left to do, tough teams to play and we need to be well prepared.'

'I have only praise for how my players are competing this season. We basically haven't had a break since winning the UEL'

Lopetegui continued: 'The table reflects your work over the season and there is still a lot of points to be played for. Nothing is confirmed yet. I'm not being over cautious, this is my mantra because it's the reality of the situation. We have played a lot more matches than other teams in a lot less time, that can't be forgotten. After a few days break after winning the Europa League we basically haven't stopped. I have only praise for how my players are doing. We had a long Copa del Rey campaign and we brought the best version we've seen of Barcelona this season right to the last second. We also fought a tough Champions League campaign were we went out at the hands of a simply extraordinary footballer, I don't think you can say we were the worse team. And now the most difficult part of the season is coming up.'

Our coach was asked about Club President José Castro and Director of Football Monchi, and what relationship they shared: 'They trust in what we are doing and we are delighted to have their confidence, but we need to keep convincing them. Everything we have done until now means nothing. We have to keep working. We try to honour the responsibility of being the coach of Sevilla Fútbol Club by pushing ourselves every day to grow and improve. We are happy if they're happy and satisfied, and we are happy and satisfied to belong to Sevilla and feel this mutual trust. But we have to keep working.'

'We use our inconformity as a positive. We come to work every single day with the intention of improving Sevilla FC'

'We need to reach the maximum in all levels, including mental. We need to be excited, motivated, and prepared for the end of the season, taking each game at a time. The competition demands 100% of you every single game, you can only work one at a time. If you speak about other things you aren't fully focused on the next match. Rest is also part of our work so that the players can keep their minds fresh and take on new concepts as quickly as possible,' Lopetegui responded when asked about the end of the season.'

With the interview drawing to its close, Julen finished saying 'it's always good to be demanding. We use our inconformity as positive. We come to work every single day with the intention of improving Sevilla FC and achieving our goals.'