Luis García and Pablo Fornals call for the fans and the team to be as one to beat Spartak
Villarreal manager Luis García and midfielder Pablo Fornals have underlined the importance of this Thursday’s match against Spartak Moscow at the Estadio de la Cerámica (6:55pm CET). The Yellows are looking for a win that will see them qualify for the round of 32 as group winners.
“It’s a final. We go through or we get knocked out. That’s it. The match against Huesca is very important, but this is a final. The players really want to do things well. Tomorrow they will go out on the pitch giving their all and I hope when the match is over they can’t move. We won’t see massive changes, but there will be small details that are different. It’s a really important match for the club and for the fans, we’ll go onto the pitch with a lot of ambition,” commented García.
The new Yellow Submarine boss showed his excitement: “It’s an exciting challenge. It gives me energy. They’ve been three busy days, where I’ve hardly slept and had to be on top of all the little things. The excitement is taking over me and it’s a massive responsibility. We have a great set of players, but we need to be a team from this moment. Tomorrow I want to see the excitement on the pitch. I hope that the small details we’ve been working on these last few days can be seen.”
García also wanted to send a message to the supporters: “I’ve come to this stadium on many occasions to watch games. The Villarreal support knows about football and knows when one-off moments are very important. I hope the players feel the support of the fans. We need to think that we can enjoy a great moment of joy tomorrow. It’s really important that we’re all together as one.”
Regarding tomorrow’s opponent, García underlined their attacking potential: “Spartak is a Russian side, but with Brazilian traces. Up front, they have a lot of quality. We want to try and make the most of the spaces we find and stop them from having them. The idea is to form a solid base so our players feel comfortable and can unleash all of their quality.”
The path to follow is clear for the coach: “I want my team to be brave and to have various options of playing. In defence we need to be solid, focused and have a lot of energy. There are very few teams that are capable of dominating the entire match.”
Fornals: “It’s a final”
The other man to face the press in the Estadio de la Cerámica was Fornals. The midfielder recognised the importance of the Spartak match: “For us, it’s a final in the Europa League. It’s really important and we’re going into the game thinking about that. If we don’t get a point, we’re out. We’re really keen to have a great game and qualify for the next round. If we achieve that, it will be what we need to get the season going properly. We want to end the year with a good taste in our mouth.”
Fornals also asked the fans for their backing: “The match in Russia was crazy. Spartak have dangerous players up front. Now we’re playing at the Estadio de la Céramica and we want it to be a fortress. We need to build off being an organised team and be as focused as possible to not let in goals.”
Finally, the Yellows No.8 hopes the team reacts to García from his fist match in charge: “It’s true that when there is a new manager, all of us players have a chance to show what we can do. The gaffer knows the squad we have and it’s important that we’re all ready to play. The end of a cycle has started and now it’s a new one. What we all want is to win. It hurts all of us to see the team in the situation we’re in at the moment. Luckily, we have time to improve.”
