Marcelino: “We were unable to overcome the mistakes in the first half”

The Yellow Submarine head coach lamented the lack of finishing against Atlético de Madrid

Villarreal CF head coach Marcelino García Toral spoke to the media to analyse the 2-0 defeat against Atlético de Madrid at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano.

Assessment

“The goal from Barrios so early did not change anything for us. It was a hard blow because of how it happened, but I think we recovered very well. In fact, we had several chances in the first half to score. We started the second half well, and just as we were dominating, the second goal arrived. Atlético were very clinical, although we also had several situations we should have avoided. They had moments of superiority and controlled the match more than we would have liked.”

The key: finishing

“The key to beating Atlético is being clinical, and we were not. We had chances from Alberto Moleiro and Nicolas Pepe, but we did not convert them.”

Changes in midfield

“With the substitutions, I was looking for different solutions. Honestly, with the score at 2-0, I thought of the match against Tottenham. We had to consider that some players were returning from injury, others from international duty… In addition, at that point we were lacking power and attacking presence in midfield, hence the changes. In the end, not taking the chances in the first half and some in the second, combined with the second goal, was a blow we could not recover from.”

The latest signings

“We will try to help them adapt as quickly as possible. We know we play every three days, which makes it difficult, but that is no excuse. They need to get used to their teammates, the competition, and our objectives quickly. The coaching staff will do everything to make that happen as soon as possible.”