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González: "We're under pressure to win every week"
The coach talks before the game against Celta Vigo
Manolo González was in pragmatic mood in his pre-match press conference ahead of RCD Espanyol's game against Celta Vigo. He insisted that his team "are under pressure to win every week."
"I'm only thinking about this week's match. That's what I'm focused on. I'm not considering anything else right now. Whist Celta Vigo haven't won at home, that needs to be analysed. They have hosted Villarreal, Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, and Betis. Perhaps that should also be mentioned, because I've watched all their matches and I see that they play well and have deserved more than points than they've managed so far," he explained."
"I don't believe in statistics. Every game is different, and statistics and data are worthless to me. I believe in the players."
He also commented that "at times we’ve had possession and it hasn’t helped us. Celta are a team that play well and know exactly what they want to do. If we’re a team that play with few passes in our moves, it’s because teams press us very high up the pitch. A clear example is what we did a few days ago against Sevilla.”
Finally, González also revealed that he considers several factors before deciding whether a player should start.
“I go by what happens in training, by how the players work. I also want everyone to be focused on the competition. I want everyone to feel like they can play on Sunday. It’s not good for a team to stay the same every week, because of the physical and psychological strain it causes. It’s not good to always be a starter, nor is it good to always be a substitute,” he explained.