LOPETEGUI: 'ALMERÍA HAVE DESERVEDLY KNOCKED OUT TWO LA LIGA TEAMS'

01/02/2021

Lopetegui confirmed that various players would be subject to fitness tests and that Marcos Acuña had picked up 'a serious injury'

Julen Lopetegui appeared before the media this Monday morning in the traditional pre-match press conference. The team play in the Copa del Rey quarter finals tomorrow against UD Almería: 'Tomorrow is a final, like every game in the Cup. That's the attitude we need to have and we are playing a very good team. They play well, have good players and a talented coach. They have played to a high level in every Cup game, knocking out two La Liga teams deservedly. They are having a great season in the league and they have interesting players with real technical ability and a deep squad. It will be a tough match and we go into it fully motivated to overcome the difficulties and qualify for the semi finals.'

Asked about injuries in the squad, Lopetegui was frank: 'There are a lot of players out. It's a really tough situation at the moment, and we'll have to wait until tomorrow to see how they are. Acuña's injury is a really bad one and he'll be out for a while. We're going to have to wait and see how Jesús develops over the next day. There are more players but I prefer not to give any names as we're waiting to see how they are tomorrow. Things are tough at the moment cause we have had so many physically demanding games and we had a really serious injury with Acuña.'

'There are a lot of players out. Acuña's injury is serious.'

Lopetegui believes that Almería being in a lower league has no bearing: 'We don't look at the league; we look at the opponent. They are a really good team and we go into the match with the motivation to win and qualify for the semi finals. They are talented and compete well in all their matches and have a really interesting squad. That's what we're focused on.' The coach confirmed that Papu Gómez would be available to play: 'He arrived in good shape despite not having trained the last month with Atalanta's first team. He's looked after himself and is in good shape. Now he just has to get back into match fitness and get into the swing of things. Things are looking good and he's available.'

Without time in between matches, the team has to keep going: 'We've been playing two matches a week for a very long time, we only have time to look at who is available for what match. We try to prepare for matches the best way we can and with how big tomorrow's match is we must prepare extra well.' Lopetegui did not see any similarties between Almería and Leganés, the other Second Division team Sevilla have faced in this Cup campaign: 'They are very different to Leganés. They are the best team in their league and they could easily be in La Liga. They are really well coached and that's how they've managed to knock out two La Liga teams.'

'Papu Gómez is in good shape. Things are looking good and he's available'

The coach also spoke about Pablo Pérez, who returned to action with Sevilla Atlético after a long injury: 'He played 15 minutes after coming back from a tough injury. It's good for him to get minutes with the B team.' Julen was also asked about Almería's top scorer: 'Sadiq is a very interesting player. He did a great job at Partizan Belgrade and he's a good player, like many of Almería's.'

The transfer market comes to a close today and Lopetegui was asked if he was hoping no big offer would come in from a Premier League club for his players: 'The only thing I'm hoping for is that the injured players are feeling better tomorrow. We're going to need as many players as possible for tomorrow because it will be a demanding match. That's our only thought.' To finish, he admitted there is a chance Idrissi could leave: 'I know there's discussions ongoing. He arrived injured and it's true he hasn't had many chances. He's decided to try and get more minutes. It's not completely confirmed and the market is out of my control. What I'm focusing on is getting my players back for our final in Almería.'