JOSÉ MARÍA DEL NIDO CARRASCO: "I UNDERSTAND THE SUPPORTERS' FRUSTRATION"

José María del Nido Carrasco, Sevilla FC vice president, appeared on the 'Libre y Directo' programme with Radio Sevilla on Cadena SER at midday on Wednesday, providing a broad and in-depth assessment of the current situation at the club. Del Nido Carrasco began by touching on the latest Sevilla update, Wednesday's release of the official first team captains' photograph for the 2023/24 season, in which Sergio Ramos was included: "Sergio has been named as one of our captains on merit, he grew up here, is a global football icon, a world champion... Jesús, Ivan, Fernando and Sergio are four captains who are up to the task of leading this club to the required standards. Their futures will be addressed at the end of the season, but I only have good words to say about all of them and they will all have the right to decide how long they want to be here - whether that be on the pitch or upstairs in a different role..."

"To talk about transfers today wouldn't make sense nor be respectful of the current players, who are the best we have and who fight for the club every time they wear the shirt. Of course, we're always looking at the market, actively working on different options in case someone becomes available, but it's not the time to talk about this. Having said this, we will definitely make additions, as we always do in the summer or winter windows," continued Del Nido Carrasco on the sporting situation. On the subject of present options in all competitions, he then added: "Even though we often find the Champions League a particularly tough challenge, we approach every game in every competition with the intention of winning. The Copa del Rey is potentially the most winnable this year, given the number of points that Madrid, Barcelona and Atlético de Madrid consistently rack up in the league, but whenever we start our cup campaign aiming to win it."

On current form and the confidence in the group, the vice president gave the following verdict: “It's understandable that the supporters are dissatisfied and critical as the team isn't winning. We had expectations for the season and the start hasn't matched those or been up to the level reuqired at Sevilla FC. We believe in the current squad 100%. We signed eight players whose quality we are convinced of and the same is true of the coach. As the board we have to stay calm and let the team do their job on the pitch. I understand that the fans are unhappy, it's normal in these circumstances."

"I'm convinced that the squad and the coach are going to get results and make the fans happy"

Del Nido Carrasco went on to look ahead to the upcoming game: "The sole focus is to beat Real Sociedad. Do that and things will look very different; we've done something well to get to 14 finals. We have won the Europa League on average once every two years in the last decade. The issue is that last year was tough as, for a time, relegation was a threat and we had three coaches. We ask for the understanding of the supporters as we were ambitious in the transfer market and backed Mendilibar after winning the Europea League and qualifying for the Champions League in the process. I'm convinced that, although we haven't started this season as we'd have liked, the squad and the coach are going to be a successful and bring joy to the fanbase, who we thank enormously for their continued and passionate support."

In the same breath, the vice president reiterated his total faith in Diego Alonso: "The other day I thought about the backing I've shown to the coach, I say it whenever we're asked because I believe in him, his work and that the results are coming. I say this with complete confidence. When [Alonso] arrived, he had 10 days to train, then played Real Madrid and Arsenal before facing Cádiz and Celta - which are the two games that people were most disappointed with. He then had Arsenal away and the Gran Derbi. In four league games we haven't won but also haven't lost, alongside the two defeats to Arsenal, who at the moment are ultimately a better side than us... but whenever I am asked the question, I will tell you that I trust the coach, and that is the truth."