The manager highlighted the job well done by the less regular starters in the Calderón stadium
The Villarreal CF manager, Marcelino García Toral, expressed his pride his players’ work in the Vicente Calderón stadium. The Submarine gained a worthy point against Atlético de Madrid and stay firmaly in fourth place in the table. “What makes me most proud is that many players played that don’t do so usually. All those players train in silence every day, respecting their teammates and their manager, they train maximally and now they’ve got their reward. Today I am really grateful for those players”, he commented.
Marcelino thinks that Rukavina was one of the best players on the pitch. The Serbian footballer played on the right wing and he shined there. “I’m really proud of the team and especially of those players that play less than others. They competed very well. Today many players played that don’t usually play and I’m very proud of the whole squad. To come to this ground and compete at this level is difficult. I’m happy, but especially for Rukavina, who is an example. He trains, he doesn’t play and he always has a smile on his face for everyone. I think he was the best of the 22 or among the best 3 tonight. I’m tremendously happy”.
According to the manager, the fight for fourth place will be fought to the end: “We played very well at times, above all when taking into account the rival that faced us. The team did a really good job and I hope we’re capable of continuing like this to secure this position, which is going to be a very difficult task because there is still a lot of the league to go and the team on our heels, Sevilla, are a quality side”.
The Submarine kept another clean sheet. This solid defensive performance was the key to winning the point. “This team has taken a big step up to the highest level of competition over the years. The test was today and in the upcoming games. The team are playing to a very high level. I hope that we don’t suffer any more injuries and we keep going forward humbly, with this competitiveness”, asserted Marcelino.
Lastly, the Yellows manager stated that the most important thing now is to regain their strength in face of the second leg tie against Napoli on Thursday (9:05pm): “We will face a stadium with supporters that will pile on the pressure. A difficult game awaits us, but now it is fundamental to recover after today’s effort”.
