The head coach has bemoaned Villarreal CF’s lack of clinical edge in attack and defence following their Copa del Rey elimination
Villarreal CF head coach Marcelino García Toral spoke to the media afterwards following the defeat against Real Racing de Santander, which brought the Yellow Submarine’s Copa del Rey campaign to an end (2-1).
The Asturian coach admitted his disappointment with the result, while defending the effort of his players. “December has not been our best month. The opposition are clinical and we are not when we get our chances. We are sad, but I do not think there is anything to reproach the team for. We tried from the very first minute and our approach showed respect and control, but the opposition were able to take advantage of their moments.”
He also highlighted the lack of sharpness in key moments at both ends. “It seems that everything that reaches our box turns into a goal, while what we create does not. Their goalkeeper did well and our forwards did not.”
The Villarreal coach also acknowledged how painful the elimination was. “It is a tough blow. Today you are knocked out of a competition in which there were five matches left to reach a final. It is difficult, but we have to pick ourselves up because in four days we have another match.” Marcelino also expressed concern about the state of his squad. “Today, on top of the result, we have lost a couple of players.”
In terms of the sporting analysis, Marcelino explained the current situation the team are going through. “These things come in phases. If we are not at our best level, we have to train to recover it. In attack we are not sharp and we rush things too much. We need to train so that attacking players have more precision and defensive players are more effective in our own area.”
Finally, the coach put the current situation into context and made it clear that he is not concerned about LALIGA. “When we arrived here two years ago, Villarreal had 12 points after 13 matches. Now we have 35 from a possible 45. In the Champions League, if we could not achieve what we wanted, we have to demand more of ourselves. In the Copa del Rey we are out and I take full responsibility. Today we dominated the entire match, even in the first half, with several chances, but without the necessary precision.”
