MENDILIBAR ON GIRONA: "WE ARE GOING TO PUT PRESS HIGH, WE WON'T BE WAITING ON THEM TO COME AT US"

José Luis Mendilibar spoke to the press ahead of Monday's game against Girona. Although today's training was the first to prepare for the game and with Sunday's session still to go, the boss gave some updates on the squad's fitness: "Jesús has a small problem that he's been carrying for a couple of weeks, I hope he can train tomorrow. Marcos Acuña had a stomach ache and I think he'll train as normal tomorrow. The rest have done a recovery session, those that played, and we will see what shape they are in after tomorrow's training session". With this in mind, Mendilibar mentioned that there are likely to be rotations again in the starting eleven due to the demanding schedule: "It is normal to have changes, it's difficult to put the same team out or only swap one or two players. We have four days of rest in between games at the moment, then against Espanyol it will be three... We have to try and keep those that are in good shape fit until the end of the season, we are counting on the help of everybody. The focus now is to bring everybody back". 

Regarding the possible fatigue of the team, he made no excuses: "The trips are comfortable, we don't feel too tired from the journey and there's time to rest. And we're not going to complain about the schedule, if there are games every 3-4 days it's because we're in some other competition and we have to be prepared. When I arrived, we only thought about the game at hand, not about Europe or anything else, now it has to be like that all the time. We don't have to worry about anything other than Girona, bringing players back and trying to field the best players possible. I don't mean just in terms of quality, but also thinking about their fitness and who can handle 90 minutes".  

"We have ample players to help us out"

In regards to Monday's opposition, Girona FC, the boss stated that the plan is to put them under from the word go: "We are going to press high. They are also going to want to cause us some problems. The idea is this, we won't be waiting on them to come at us. Yes, in this sense you're running a risk but I think both teams will be content this way". Once again, Mendilibar commented on the fitness of some of his players: "Fernando is coming back from having not played the last one through suspension, he will be a boost for us. Tanguy will see how much he can do and the other injuries are Marcao and Jordán. If you put midfielders in defence, it limits you, but we have enough people who can help us. Óliver has played in several positions and I think we have a chance to win". Concerning Suso, Mendilibar said that "Suso would have done that manoeuvre without me even saying anything beforehand, for sure. I don't have a lot to say, I have to encourage them and make things easy for them. Sometimes I don't know when to shut up and this was maybe one of the issues. I've been sacked four times, and I've managed some complex teams and some strange players... you can be considered a parasite but it's the results that matter. Additionally, the boss spoke about Bryan Gil and his game time: "Bryan is playing well and quite often. There is a lot of competition for that position, for example, Tecatito hasn't been available and neither has Papu... I always try to start the best players".  

In terms of the player's good form and the enthusiasm of the fans, Mendilibar highlighted that "I said it at the start, our plan is that our players come to training at ease. If a player comes to training happy because he likes to train, he will train better. The result is what matters, the players are happy because of the positive results and those that don't play prove themselves in training. The fans were silenced and now they've seen gold at the end of the rainbow in the Europa League and how the dynamic is going in LaLiga. I think that the board is happy. I am spending every day with them and from that perspective, I think things are good. But, as I said, it's the results that matter". Regarding the players, he specified that "it's more mental than physical, your mind has a lot of influence. If you see that the opposition hasn't scored against you and you are still in the game even if you are not playing well, it makes you stay in the game. That feeling helps you draw strength from wherever... I came in, looked at the situation the team is in, looked at what team I had and soon realised that they were a top set and that due to external circumstances, they weren't where they were supposed to be. In the end, it's them that get you out of the dilemma. You help them when they win and when they lose... winning is always attributed to the players and losing is always linked to the coaches".   

"The players are happy because of the positive results and those that don't play prove themselves in training"

In closing, the boss talked about what was lacking against Atheltic, with a view to correcting this for the upcoming games: "At San Mamés I think we defended well apart from the first couple of minutes when they caused us some problems. In the second half, they didn't have a shot. Perhaps we should have been stronger in our play. Having said that, we were playing against the best side in the league for that style of hard-hitting football. In front of goal, we weren't able to get in behind them. Their defenders were comfortable pressing high".