MENDILIBAR: "ALMERÍA HAVE SOME VERY GOOD PLAYERS"

Hours after returning from the weekend's trip to Pamplona, preparations are in full swing for Sevilla FC vs UD Almería. On Tuesday, José Luis Mendilibar held a pre-match press conference: "It's been two days since Osasuna, then on the third day we have a match. We're still recovering. Today is the worst day because normally we would be resting and reviewing the previous match, but instead we have just over 24 hours until the next one and still waiting on some players to finish their recovery. There has to be a mutual trust between us because they have to be honest with us [the coaching staff] about whether they can play. However, after Saturday's point in Pamplona, we need another three to feel more content."

Discussing the pressure to climb up the league table, the manager was clear: "If we play with that mentality, it isn't going to be good for anyone. We have the need and the desire to win and try our best to do so, but the results aren't always what we'd like. It's not that we need to win because it is still very early in the season. We want to win, just as we would against any opponent. We want to do well, get our ideas across on the pitch and claim the victory. These long away trips make it harder, but [Almería] also played two days ago and hopefully we have enough to beat them."

"We have just over 24 hours until the next one and still waiting on some to finish their recovery"

He wanted to focus solely on the team: "I'm not worried about myself. I'm not new to this, I've spent lots of time in football and I know how things work. I know that we need to win for me to continue on this journey, but I don't feel any pressure. I'm calm, trying to do things as best as I can, using the players I think are in the best condition. It's not easy, having so many matches in quick succession, but I'm relaxed. We know that we are Sevilla and we've had many years becoming accustomed to winning things and now find ourselves not winning so much. Yet we are now unbeaten in three and hope to extend that run tomorrow.

Although the opponent hasn't started the season well, the manager isn't reading into this: "Almería have very good players. The manager is new and they've not had a good start. They're still trying to instill a new philosophy and it's not easy, but they're a club that invests well. They have good individuals and when the manager gets his ideas fully across, they'll do well. I hope we're the better team tomorrow and we win. It'll be different to at El Sadar. Perhaps they haven't yet gelled as a team in the same way as Osasuna, but if you have strong individuals you can still perform and play well as a unit."

"Some players tell you they're ready to go again, while others don't give you the same assurance... you have to look at your options, consider what each player can give and then pick what you believe to be the best team. It's not easy, sometimes there are risks involved as you have to play someone who's been injured without being sure they've fully recovered... if I'm told a player is ready and think they should start, they will. Óliver is unavailable tomorrow, He asked to come off against Osasuna as he was injured. It's not serious but playing every three days means tomorrow he wont make it. The following game we will see."

The boss continued by addressing last season's performance: "Without holding anything against the attack, we're lacking composure in our finishing in comparison to last season. We attack and defend as a team and anyone is capable of scoring, even if they are technically a defender. The difference is that at the moment we simply aren't converting as many chances as last year. We're finding it difficult to score the opener and we're less aggressive. Last year we scored many goals from close-range, put the ball in the box a lot and also got many players into the opposition penalty area. This is what we're missing most right now."