LOPETEGUI: "BEATING ATLÉTICO IS A BIG ENOUGH AIM TO NOT THINK ABOUT ANYTHING ELSE"

On Saturday night, at the press room at the Jesús Navas Stadium, Julen Lopetegui gave his pre-match press conference ahead of Sunday's match at home to Atlético de Madrid. The manager began by speaking about a strange week, after both the international break and the news that Sergio Escudero had tested positive for COVID-19: "The circumstances are out of our control and we have to adapt to the context. We have been able to work yesterday and today and what has happened is beyond our control". 

"Our only objective, and it's a tremendous one, is Atlético de Madrid. It's the only thing on our minds this week. They're top of the table, one of the best teams in the world and have top-quality players. Beating Atlético is a big enough aim to not think about anything else. We are thinking about what is left for us to do and that is the next game. They have spectacular players and a top manager, and to beat them you have to be close to perfection. There's no other way of competing against Atlético and that's what we'll try to do", Lopetegui continued. 

The manager then expressed his opinion on VAR: "Everyone tries to do their best and perform at their best. VAR aims to improve football and make it fairer. It will never be perfect but it has arrived to make football fairer. Everything has its nuances and it will improve over time". To finish, he offered no clues about tomorrow's starting line-up: "We'll wait until tomorrow to make decisions regarding the team. We will wait until then to make those decisions ahead of the match".