The groguet coach highlighted the high level at which the team competes in LaLiga and the Champions League and the importance of both competitions

Villarreal coach Unai Emery analysed the draw against Athletic Club (1-1) on matchday 31 of LaLiga at the Estadio de la Cerámica in a press conference. The Hondarribia-born coach stressed the importance of continuing to compete in LaLiga, despite the tough Champions League play-offs. These are the highlights of the Basque coach’s statements:

Match assessment

“Overall, it’s a point that doesn’t leave us satisfied with the idea of continuing to find regularity in LaLiga to achieve European conditions. In Europe, we are competing at a high level, but we are finding it hard at times. We approached the game in a demanding way and with a different eleven that gave us a good performance. Logically, we wanted to win. In the first hour, we deserved to take the lead, then they scored against us. With the changes, we thought we could be closer to winning. They move very well given the space. The draw is fair, but not enough.

European fatigue

“We’ve just come from a very tough tie against Juventus in which we dropped points in LaLiga along the way. We knew that now we had 15 very nice days ahead of us, but very hard days in which we had to manage the team well”.

Expectations in LaLiga

“There are games left. There are points left. The Champions League is giving us a lot, but it’s also demanding a lot. We wanted to aspire to get into the top four, but that objective has gone out of reach. Now, the objective is to get into the other European competitions.

To watch the full press conference, click on the link.