Quique S. Flores: “We have to finish the season as well as possible”
“If we don’t do our part, the rest won’t matter”
Quique Sánchez Flores made it very clear that his team is used to playing so-called ‘finals’ in this second round and sent a warning of danger regarding the match against Málaga after the Andalusia side strengthened itself in the winter market. The manager said that Málaga is one of the best squads in the second half of the season and that they’ll have to play well in order to win.
Málaga just moved out of the relegation zone and it will be another final for the ‘rojiblancos’. “We feel like we’re constantly playing finals, but our opponents also have important and definitive goals. Therefore, these are matches in which we expect our opponents to put all they have into one game: high intensity, individual battles, focus, lots of running and tough play. We’re playing well but it’s true that Málaga is also one of the best teams in the second half. Therefore, I think it will be a tough match against an opponent that is a much better side than they showed in the first half of La Liga. We’ll have to be cautious and play well if we want to win the match,” he stated.
With respect to whether Diego Costa might be available to play, the head coach said that “we’ll see. He had a good training, he’s strong and I think that he’ll be one-hundred percent ready. For these types of games we need to have players who are at one-hundred percent.”
Concerning whether he believes that Atlético’s good form has arrived a bit late to make it to Champions League, the manager commented that “I have a very particular opinion about this season, which begins in September and will finish in May. Three or four conditioning factors have taken place which have affected the team’s chances, beyond the mistakes that we’ve made, starting with myself as the chief responsible person, passing through the players and those who make decisions within the Club. In general, this is the way seasons go. Things happen and then you have to resolve the problems. But just sticking with that doesn’t move you forward at all. We’ll remain with the excitement that we’re capable of generating, the people who go to the stadium and watch their team happily day after day playing football and finishing that day winning games. It’s not about missing things, but rather that things happen.”
Looking for an explanation about why Atlético de Madrid has been so inconsistent during the current season, the ‘rojiblanco’ manager commented that “it’s very clear to me and I’m obligated to assess whether I want to resolve and make solutions and decisions that can help the team at each moment. But it’s not a matter of thinking that there are four games left and then things are done. Now isn’t the time to evaluate. I know very clearly what the team’s path has been. Seasons go the way they go and we have to finish as well as possible, in a situation that is relatively nice for Atlético de Madrid, playing well, winning games and in Europa League spots, and with one title already won. We’re going to finish the season and make evaluations and analyze how the season went.”
Atlético de Madrid, after a long time, depend on their own results to finish the campaign off well. “In general, teams depend on themselves at the beginning of the season and then during the course thereof, but prudence and knowing that this hasn’t ended can lead us to finishing well, which we want to do. We have two more games in front of our supporters, and we want them to enjoy them, and we have two games on the road and want to maintain the way we’ve been playing away from home. That’s our goal,” he highlighted.
With respect to this week’s opponent, Málaga, he was asked about his thoughts on Pellegrini, their manager. “You can’t blame their season on Pellegrini because he took over the team after the season had already started, so he didn’t take part in putting together the squad. Pellegrini’s Malaga will be seen much more next season. But I look fondly upon Pellegrini. He’s a well-mannered guy, knows his football and respects his colleagues. I’ve always liked him because he respects the profession,” he stated.
To finish, he doesn’t want to think about the results of other teams involved in the race, preferring to focus on his own “Wasting time thinking about what our direct rivals are doing in the fight for Europe doesn’t help us at all. If we don’t do our part, it won’t matter what everyone else does. It’s really sad, if you don’t fulfill your duty, to think about whether the others are also slipping up. You have to do your part to depend on yourself. Then, if we do things right and our rivals slip up, then that’s much better. But you don’t know which opponents are easier or tougher until the games end. I’ve seen teams in a huge depression and an even more depressing schedule who have fought back and rallied,” he concluded.
Málaga just moved out of the relegation zone and it will be another final for the ‘rojiblancos’. “We feel like we’re constantly playing finals, but our opponents also have important and definitive goals. Therefore, these are matches in which we expect our opponents to put all they have into one game: high intensity, individual battles, focus, lots of running and tough play. We’re playing well but it’s true that Málaga is also one of the best teams in the second half. Therefore, I think it will be a tough match against an opponent that is a much better side than they showed in the first half of La Liga. We’ll have to be cautious and play well if we want to win the match,” he stated.
With respect to whether Diego Costa might be available to play, the head coach said that “we’ll see. He had a good training, he’s strong and I think that he’ll be one-hundred percent ready. For these types of games we need to have players who are at one-hundred percent.”
Concerning whether he believes that Atlético’s good form has arrived a bit late to make it to Champions League, the manager commented that “I have a very particular opinion about this season, which begins in September and will finish in May. Three or four conditioning factors have taken place which have affected the team’s chances, beyond the mistakes that we’ve made, starting with myself as the chief responsible person, passing through the players and those who make decisions within the Club. In general, this is the way seasons go. Things happen and then you have to resolve the problems. But just sticking with that doesn’t move you forward at all. We’ll remain with the excitement that we’re capable of generating, the people who go to the stadium and watch their team happily day after day playing football and finishing that day winning games. It’s not about missing things, but rather that things happen.”
Looking for an explanation about why Atlético de Madrid has been so inconsistent during the current season, the ‘rojiblanco’ manager commented that “it’s very clear to me and I’m obligated to assess whether I want to resolve and make solutions and decisions that can help the team at each moment. But it’s not a matter of thinking that there are four games left and then things are done. Now isn’t the time to evaluate. I know very clearly what the team’s path has been. Seasons go the way they go and we have to finish as well as possible, in a situation that is relatively nice for Atlético de Madrid, playing well, winning games and in Europa League spots, and with one title already won. We’re going to finish the season and make evaluations and analyze how the season went.”
Atlético de Madrid, after a long time, depend on their own results to finish the campaign off well. “In general, teams depend on themselves at the beginning of the season and then during the course thereof, but prudence and knowing that this hasn’t ended can lead us to finishing well, which we want to do. We have two more games in front of our supporters, and we want them to enjoy them, and we have two games on the road and want to maintain the way we’ve been playing away from home. That’s our goal,” he highlighted.
With respect to this week’s opponent, Málaga, he was asked about his thoughts on Pellegrini, their manager. “You can’t blame their season on Pellegrini because he took over the team after the season had already started, so he didn’t take part in putting together the squad. Pellegrini’s Malaga will be seen much more next season. But I look fondly upon Pellegrini. He’s a well-mannered guy, knows his football and respects his colleagues. I’ve always liked him because he respects the profession,” he stated.
To finish, he doesn’t want to think about the results of other teams involved in the race, preferring to focus on his own “Wasting time thinking about what our direct rivals are doing in the fight for Europe doesn’t help us at all. If we don’t do our part, it won’t matter what everyone else does. It’s really sad, if you don’t fulfill your duty, to think about whether the others are also slipping up. You have to do your part to depend on yourself. Then, if we do things right and our rivals slip up, then that’s much better. But you don’t know which opponents are easier or tougher until the games end. I’ve seen teams in a huge depression and an even more depressing schedule who have fought back and rallied,” he concluded.
