Escribá and Musacchio call for team and fans to come together ahead of the European tie
Villarreal play against FC Steaua Bucuresti this Thursday to qualify for the Round of 32 of the UEFA Europa League (5pm CET). The Yellows are dependent upon themselves; if they get three points they will qualify, and if they draw their fate will depend on the result of the other match in Group L (Osmanlispor-Zürich).
Villarreal Manager, Fran Escribá, is extremely confident in his side’s chances: “All four teams are in the same situation, whoever wins will qualify. We’re just thinking about ourselves, about playing well and winning, not depending on anyone. We’re playing against teams that are stronger than they seem and this is why this competition has been so difficult; we aren’t the only ones to have made mistakes. But qualification is still in our hands and we’re going to take it”.
The Submarine know what’s at stake. “The players know how to play under pressure, they’ve already played matches at this level, they’re top level players and I’m sure they’re going to do well. I’m more worried about the matches that people think are easy. They’re going to be nervous for this match, but the pressure is going to help them focus more, I’m sure of that”, the Manager commented.
According to Escribá, the match will be an exciting one: “There will be chances for us to attack and counterattack, there will be times when we have to attack, but they will also have their chances, as they have quality, dangerous individuals. I don’t want an end to end, crazy match. That won’t be any good for us. I believe we have the strengths and have worked hard enough to be able to control the game”.
Escribá also wanted to send a message to the fans: “We expect the support and help of our fans. We are going to try to win the match on the pitch, but our fans must also win it off the pitch, from the first minute”.
Musacchio: “We can’t wait for the match to start”
The player to feature at today’s press conference at El Madrigal was Mateo Musacchio. The Argentinean centre back spoke on behalf of the squad: “We can’t wait for the match to start and our heads are already in the game. This is European football and all the teams are tough and this one will be no different. We know what we’re playing for, we’re eager to do well in this competition and so we want to go through to the next round. We are focused on winning, going through, the thought of getting knocked out has not passed through our heads”.
For the defender, it will be a difficult match: “We knew this competition wasn’t going to be easy, this is football and anything can happen. They’re a great team, with great players, as we saw in the first leg. They made things hard for us in that game and so we know it’s going to be anything but easy. We’re only thinking about ourselves, so they will be the ones worrying about our game”.
