Pablo Machín during the press conference

First team

MACHÍN: 'IF THEY ARE THE BEST SIDE ON THE ROAD IT'S BECAUSE THEY HAVE QUALITY'

02/11/2018

Sevilla's manager played down the fact that Real Sociedad have not won yet this season at the Anoeta, where they will play in 48 hours

Pablo Machín spoke to the media this Friday after training to explain how he sees Sunday's game against Real Sociedad, where we return to action in La Liga: 'That's our intention - to give the best version of ourselves in every competition. We know that it's difficult against any rival and Real Sociedad will be no different. It's true they haven't won at home yet, but they are the best away side. They will make it a tough game and we hope they don't pick up their first win at home on Sunday.' Regarding those missing, he prefers to wait: 'I try to be honest. We keep working and we'll see how they recover tomorrow. It'll be difficult for them to give their best level, but they might be able to help us out. I can't say anything for definite until we know how they are. Common sense is the best in these situations and you have to play the players in the best condition. It's best not to take risks with muscular problems because we could end up losing them for even longer. If they don't feel good tomorrow, they're unlikely to play.'

Speaking further about the potentially injured players, Machín highlighted the importance of Escudero's recovery. 'Every injury is a worry. In some areas of the pitch, it's more difficult to find a replacement and it's true that our defenders are picking up the most. Escudero managed the 90 minutes yesterday and we can count on him, but if our number nine can't play it would be a setback. It was going to happen at some point and we'll have to deal with it. It's a challenge for us to see how we adapt.'

The Sorian spoke with irony when presented with some of Real Sociedad's stats as they have not won at home yet this season: 'Well, if that's what the stats say, we can leave now and that's that. I know people are saying they haven't won at the Anoeta yet, but if they are the best away team it's because they have talent. We hope they don't pick up their first home win on Sunday, but we know they are a big team who will fight for the Europa League. They are similar to us in terms of the squad and they'll have the incentive of making their fans happy.

If they are the best away team it's because they have talent, we hope they don't pick up their first home win on Sunday

Furthermore, he spoke about the possible replacements for André Silva if the Portuguese ends up not making the game: 'Every time the strikers have played they've had chances to score and strikers are often judged by their goals, but the other day Ben Yedder was decisive without scoring. It's important to focus on the performance and their attitude. Yesterday Promes and Muriel were denied by the post but they scored in Europe. They are good players and help the team even without goals.'

The manager stated they manage pressure well and ruled out that there was a second team within the squad: 'Now that we're up high in the league it's logical to think about winning the next game. We have to play well against Real because we have a lot of direct rivals close to us. This will give us some breathing space when the bad run arrives. We're a quarter of the way through the competition and the team has real ability and I see that. We know that we need all of our players, I don't like speaking of a second string because they're all the first string. Also, it's not fair to just speak about players in the cup. If we're doing so well it's because we're doing so in all competitions.'

'We have to play a good game to continue winning and keep our direct rivals behind us’

The January transfer market and Machín did not shy away from talking about it: ‘Maybe a centre-back, but there could be an injury that changes everything even though I hope that doesn’t happen. The technical staff are continuously combing through the market, whether it be for January or the summer. There should be signings coming in because some are pending and we’re working on them. Good players are always compatible and there was a shortage at the back. You speak of Portu, who’s a versatile player, but the circumstances now are different and we have to evaluate the performances to come to some kind of decision.’

Finally, he spoke about the visit of Fernando Navarro to the Ciudad Deportiva: ‘It’s always nice, not just for myself but for Sevillistas, that players who used to play here and those with importance of a captain like Fernando Navarro come to greet us. We spent some time together and he told me what he thought of the club during his time here. There are similarities, but in recent years the demand has grown and we’ve allowed the people to get used to that. That’s a big change from when he first started, but it makes us all happy.’