Marcelino predicts a ‘very difficult’ clash against Sevilla and says the team will have to be firm in defence
Villarreal CF head coach Marcelino García Toral has said that he expects a very demanding game this Sunday against Sevilla FC at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán (6:30pm CET). “I’m expecting a very difficult game because Sevilla are a team that sometimes put you under pressure at their ground. They are a team that play a lot in the opposition half, they get into the box, score a lot of goals from crosses and put pressure on when they lose. They will require us to defend and attack very well and with a very high level of intensity. They are a physically powerful team. The data shows that they are penalised for not being efficient. We have to match their intensity and offer our creativity. If we are fluid on the ball we can cause them problems because they press very high,” he commented.
For Marcelino, defensive reliability will be key after three consecutive victories: “I’m very satisfied and grateful for the way the team is training and competing. It’s true that we lack continuity, but with so many games most teams lack that. On Thursday we played 65 minutes as we wanted to and 25 as we shouldn’t have. Right now we are feeling the blows. We committed a penalty and a second goal that we should have avoided. Ghosts arise when the dynamic of results has not been positive. Now we have results, but an improvement in certain areas of the game will give us more confidence. We are in the process and I think we are going to get there. Our improvement will come from improving our defensive reliability.”
The Asturian coach expects the team to maintain their good run of results against a team used to being in the top half of the table: “We are two teams who are used to fighting in the top half of the table, but with complex dynamics this season. We’re playing away. We’re on a good run of results and we hope to maintain it, but we know what Sevilla are like as a team and even more so at their ground. They can beat anyone at any time. Hopefully their reaction won’t come in this game.”
Finally, Marcelino did not want to make excuses for the short recovery time the team will have after beating Panathinaikos last Thursday night: “We know that playing in the Europa League, the next game will always be on Sunday. We have to adapt to what the competition dictates and have the maximum number of players available from a physical and mental point of view, accepting the game as a difficult challenge.”
