Villarreal’s Colombian striker, Santos Borré, expects a tough match in Turkey
Villarreal’s Colombian striker, Rafael Santos Borré, was confident ahead of the third UEFA Europa League match against Osmanlispor (Thursday, 7pm CET). “We’re ready for what will be a beautiful match and one to take us closer to securing qualification. It will be a tough match, like all European games. They’re a team that play well and will test us defensively”, he commented, although did not deny Villarreal are the favourite. “We’re the rival to beat in the group. At the weekend they rested their big players, so if we don’t give 100% we won’t win. They’ve rested players for this match and playing away from home is always difficult. It won’t be an easy environment”.
On an individual level, he said that he is available “for when the Manager needs him” because everyone has to be ready. “I’m going with a lot of confidence, after scoring in Europe (against Steaua Bucuresti) and just coming back from playing with the Colombian national team. This team is very competitive from an attacking standpoint. We’ve also talked about it between us. Being such a good group always helps”, he explained. In addition, he valued the family-like treatment he has been given from the changing room. “I’m very happy to be at a club like this. My teammates have helped me so much since day one”.
And on a collective level, he also highlighted how well the team is playing, above all in front of goal. “I didn’t expect the match (against Celta) to go like that the other day. I watched the match they played against Barcelona and they played well. We’re being really clinical in front of goal and this is very important”, he analyzed. “We have a very competitive group, both those that play as starters and those that are on the bench. We have good options to make sure we can keep fighting at the top of the table. We hope to finish in European positions, that’s our goal”.
In terms of his return to the national team, he was very happy and grateful to Manager (José Pékerman) for the confidence he has always shown in him. “It was really nice to return to the Colombian national team. To get back to being with the team helps me to keep progressing and improving. I really like the fact that the Manager always has me in mind”, he concluded.
