Quique Sánchez Flores: “We’re on the right path, but we can’t get overconfident”
“I see the players as being happy and confident, and that’s what we need”
Quique Sánchez Flores made the importance of the match against Espanyol, as well as the remaining six games, very clear. The ‘rojiblanco’ manager confirmed that Forlán will not be able to travel to Barcelona due to the periostitis that he suffered in his left leg on Thursday and that has kept him out of training since then.
The Atleti head coach said that “all of the games left are important. I don’t distinguish between one and the others. Whatever happens, I think that there will be a tie to see both teams still with chances to qualify for Europe, but obviously we want to follow the positive line. We’re coming off good games and this week’s opponents won’t make it easy for us. We know what it means to play in their stadium and have a tough time, as we did last season, and we know what it is to go there, play well, and only get a draw. We understand that it’s going to be a very difficult game and we’ll have to play very well if we want to win.”
With respect to the physical state of Forlán, he was clear. “He hasn’t trained and isn’t going to be included on the squad list due to problems regarding which only he knows how he feels. It’s periostitis and it’s a very subjective evaluation. Only he knows and if he can’t play, he can’t play. In tough moments, Diego has made a huge effort with a bad ankle and, therefore, we don’t doubt his professionalism,” he stated.
Concerning whether he will repeat the starting line-up that beat Real Sociedad, the manager stated that “everyone has my confidence. When you watch our training you realize that everyone believes they can play and, frankly, they’re all doing well. Group dynamics affect everyone. When the dynamic is positive everyone thinks positively, those that play and those that don’t. And when it’s negative, everyone thinks negatively. Now I see them as happy and confident and that’s what we’re going to need for this home stretch of the league. We’re facing an opponent that has European chances this week and in the other we’ll have squads that want to avoid relegation. Therefore, there will be lots of intensity, aggressiveness and passion for our profession and we’ll have to play as well as possible because we know that Espanyol is getting ready for the game as if it was a final.”
Regarding whether De Gea could be affected by all the rumours that have arisen this week and whether things will circulate around other players, he was categorical. “That’s definitely going to happen. It will affect other players, almost always the same ones… It’s something that one in this profession has to get used to dealing with. As regards the specific case of David, that’s an old rumour, which has been going on for more than a year and the lad has been carrying on with extraordinary calmness and naturalness. I’m not worried,” he stated.
He was asked if the team is physically in its best form of the season, Quique responded with clarity. “We’ve had tough moments regarding results this season and we’ve never given a ‘but’ concerning the team’s physical preparation because we haven’t had had up-and-down performances since last year. We’re practically the same team. In footballing terms, we’ve had good stretches and bad ones. We’re in good form, have security and confidence, the ball is circulating well and we’re creating lots of scoring chances. Therefore, we’re on the right path but we can’t get overconfident because if we drop our heads, we’ll create fewer scoring chances and give up more, play worse, the ball will circulate less and we’ll be a worse team,” he commented.
To finish, Quique was clear that Atlético de Madrid controls its own destiny. “That’s the message we’re sending to everybody. We’ve repeated the same thing many times, which is that we depend on ourselves. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t have been able to come out of two or three very tough situations this season. We did that by believing in ourselves, relying on the same work and thinking that a lot of what happens on the pitch depends on oneself. There is a random part that we don’t control, but we do control other parts and if you know what you have to do, if you perform well, normally you make the response the result and the match will be positive,” he finished.
The Atleti head coach said that “all of the games left are important. I don’t distinguish between one and the others. Whatever happens, I think that there will be a tie to see both teams still with chances to qualify for Europe, but obviously we want to follow the positive line. We’re coming off good games and this week’s opponents won’t make it easy for us. We know what it means to play in their stadium and have a tough time, as we did last season, and we know what it is to go there, play well, and only get a draw. We understand that it’s going to be a very difficult game and we’ll have to play very well if we want to win.”
With respect to the physical state of Forlán, he was clear. “He hasn’t trained and isn’t going to be included on the squad list due to problems regarding which only he knows how he feels. It’s periostitis and it’s a very subjective evaluation. Only he knows and if he can’t play, he can’t play. In tough moments, Diego has made a huge effort with a bad ankle and, therefore, we don’t doubt his professionalism,” he stated.
Concerning whether he will repeat the starting line-up that beat Real Sociedad, the manager stated that “everyone has my confidence. When you watch our training you realize that everyone believes they can play and, frankly, they’re all doing well. Group dynamics affect everyone. When the dynamic is positive everyone thinks positively, those that play and those that don’t. And when it’s negative, everyone thinks negatively. Now I see them as happy and confident and that’s what we’re going to need for this home stretch of the league. We’re facing an opponent that has European chances this week and in the other we’ll have squads that want to avoid relegation. Therefore, there will be lots of intensity, aggressiveness and passion for our profession and we’ll have to play as well as possible because we know that Espanyol is getting ready for the game as if it was a final.”
Regarding whether De Gea could be affected by all the rumours that have arisen this week and whether things will circulate around other players, he was categorical. “That’s definitely going to happen. It will affect other players, almost always the same ones… It’s something that one in this profession has to get used to dealing with. As regards the specific case of David, that’s an old rumour, which has been going on for more than a year and the lad has been carrying on with extraordinary calmness and naturalness. I’m not worried,” he stated.
He was asked if the team is physically in its best form of the season, Quique responded with clarity. “We’ve had tough moments regarding results this season and we’ve never given a ‘but’ concerning the team’s physical preparation because we haven’t had had up-and-down performances since last year. We’re practically the same team. In footballing terms, we’ve had good stretches and bad ones. We’re in good form, have security and confidence, the ball is circulating well and we’re creating lots of scoring chances. Therefore, we’re on the right path but we can’t get overconfident because if we drop our heads, we’ll create fewer scoring chances and give up more, play worse, the ball will circulate less and we’ll be a worse team,” he commented.
To finish, Quique was clear that Atlético de Madrid controls its own destiny. “That’s the message we’re sending to everybody. We’ve repeated the same thing many times, which is that we depend on ourselves. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t have been able to come out of two or three very tough situations this season. We did that by believing in ourselves, relying on the same work and thinking that a lot of what happens on the pitch depends on oneself. There is a random part that we don’t control, but we do control other parts and if you know what you have to do, if you perform well, normally you make the response the result and the match will be positive,” he finished.
