Sara Monforte underlined that Villarreal Women will need to compete well to beat Deportivo Alavés (Saturday, 12pm CEST)
Villarreal Women head coach Sara Monforte appeared in front of the media ahead of the Yellows’ match against Deportivo Alavés, corresponding to Matchday 4 of the 2022/23 Liga F season. The match will take place on Saturday 1st October at 12pm CEST at the José Luis Compañón Training Ground (Ibaia). Here are her standout comments.
The team’s feelings
“The team has had one of the best weeks in training this week. I think that, mentally, the game against FC Barcelona was very good for us, because the team responded. We are seeing that we are improving every week and we are going to Vitoria with good morale. The players understand better and better what we want and I think we are on the up.”
Keys to the match
“I think the key is to be at least as competitive as them. Deportivo Alavés are a very competitive team. Despite the fact that they didn’t win their first game at home, you have to remember that last season they managed to stay up because of their home form. I think we have to be competitive and take the game to where it’s in our best interests, make it a long game and try to get to the final minutes with a chance of scoring.”
The strength of the team
“The season is a very long journey. As coaches we are here to try to work with the players and make them see the reality, because many times they only think about results and short-term performance. We try to open up their vision and give them a much broader view. We understood that the first three games, although the first one was not played, were against the top three teams from last season. With this, we knew that our chances of scoring points were going to be slim. The most important thing was to give a good image, for the team to get a good feeling and to get better and better, and that has been achieved. In fact, we have achieved a better performance than we all expected. Now is when we start to play against teams in our league and teams against whom we can have many more chances. We’re in high spirits.”
A direct rival
“All the games in our league, apart from the four or five teams that are the strongest, are going to be very close. I think this season there are going to be 11 or 12 teams fighting it out and there won’t be that much difference. Obviously it’s an important game, because a point would give us extra motivation. The team is doing very well, but with the points we would be reaffirmed and it would give us a lot of confidence. We have to be ready for anything and give 200% in the things that depend on us.”
A very competitive league
“It’s a very competitive league. In fact, even Barça have had problems. It’s probably going to be the most evenly matched season and the most competitive league, which is what we’re all looking for, and it will also be more attractive for the fans.”
