Valera: “We’re really hoping to win at Anoeta to move up spots in the table”
“Things are going well for me; I’m trying to take advantage of my minutes”
Juan Valera is playing and is doing so well. The defender from Murcia is happy because he’s been getting minutes in recent matches and as a starter. He stated as much in the Press Room after Wednesday’s training at the Majadahonda Sports Complex. “When one gets minutes and is plays they’re happier. Things are going well for me, and also for the team, and I’m trying to take advantage of the all the minutes the coach is giving me.”
The Atlético ‘2’ was a starter against Osasuna in a vital victory for the team at the Vicente Calderón and in which Forlán recovered his goal-scoring instinct. “We knew that it was a matter of time before goals came for Forlán. Diego has goals flowing through his veins and he’ll surely score a lot more. With respect to Sunday’s encounter, things went well for us against an Osasuna side that falls back well and that has dangerous players. We knew that beating Osasuna was very important to latch on to the group at the top. Now we have a match in which we have placed high hopes for earning the three points and moving up a bit.”
The strongest teams have passed and now they have a bit of a lighter schedule. However, Valera doesn’t believe that everything is going to be easier now. “Nothing is easy. It’s true that things are supposed to be tougher against bigger opponents but those that aren’t as big are also going to make things as tough, or tougher, on you. They’re going to be very difficult matches. We know that we have a schedule where if we win we can get ourselves into a very good position and we’re going to try to take advantage of it.”
Precisely, now they have two matches against direct rivals in the battle for European spots, Real Sociedad and Espanyol. “That’s what we’re thinking about. First to go to Anoeta to get the three points, although that’s a difficult stadium, and then against Espanyol at home. If we earn those six points we’ll be in a very good situation.”
Regarding the fact that there always seems to be talk about Atlético signing wide fullbacks, he stated that “there has always been talk about signing left and right backs since I’ve been here. I’m not the person to say whether or not we need them. The Club handles all of these things and looks at how the squad is doing. I think the squad is doing well with two players per position. With respect to continuity, it’s true that in my first years here I didn’t get the continuity that every players wants due to the circumstances, and last year I had a bit more where I finished the season with 33 or 34 matches, which is something I hadn’t achieved before. And this year I hope to be able to continue getting more games and helping out the team.”
The Atlético ‘2’ was a starter against Osasuna in a vital victory for the team at the Vicente Calderón and in which Forlán recovered his goal-scoring instinct. “We knew that it was a matter of time before goals came for Forlán. Diego has goals flowing through his veins and he’ll surely score a lot more. With respect to Sunday’s encounter, things went well for us against an Osasuna side that falls back well and that has dangerous players. We knew that beating Osasuna was very important to latch on to the group at the top. Now we have a match in which we have placed high hopes for earning the three points and moving up a bit.”
The strongest teams have passed and now they have a bit of a lighter schedule. However, Valera doesn’t believe that everything is going to be easier now. “Nothing is easy. It’s true that things are supposed to be tougher against bigger opponents but those that aren’t as big are also going to make things as tough, or tougher, on you. They’re going to be very difficult matches. We know that we have a schedule where if we win we can get ourselves into a very good position and we’re going to try to take advantage of it.”
Precisely, now they have two matches against direct rivals in the battle for European spots, Real Sociedad and Espanyol. “That’s what we’re thinking about. First to go to Anoeta to get the three points, although that’s a difficult stadium, and then against Espanyol at home. If we earn those six points we’ll be in a very good situation.”
Regarding the fact that there always seems to be talk about Atlético signing wide fullbacks, he stated that “there has always been talk about signing left and right backs since I’ve been here. I’m not the person to say whether or not we need them. The Club handles all of these things and looks at how the squad is doing. I think the squad is doing well with two players per position. With respect to continuity, it’s true that in my first years here I didn’t get the continuity that every players wants due to the circumstances, and last year I had a bit more where I finished the season with 33 or 34 matches, which is something I hadn’t achieved before. And this year I hope to be able to continue getting more games and helping out the team.”