Julen Lopetegui speaks before the match against Tottenham Hotspur
First team

LOPETEGUI: "I'M HOPING FOR A GREAT GAME WHERE THE FANS WILL BE ABLE TO SEE GREAT PLAYERS"

15/07/2022
"Marcão won't be able to play tomorrow, he'll have to work his way in slowly but surely"

Sevilla FC coach Julen Lopetegui spoke to the press ahead of our first preseason game tomorrow against Tottenham Hotspur in the Coupang Play Series: "We're delighted to have been able to experience Korean culture. It's incredibly rich, welcoming... We've been treated so well by the fans. We've got to experience some of the culture, the wonderful food and we'll remember how we've been welcomed here. We've trained well and we're leaving happy and proud to have been in this great footballing country. I'm hoping for a great game tomorrow where the fans will be able to see great players. Hopefully there are no injuries and everything goes well to go even deeper into our preseason preparation."

"We've had an important player leave in Diego Carlos and our other starting centre-back could leave as well. We don't know what's going to happen. They're tough players to replace and we have to help Marcão adapt quickly to the demands. He's done well in Turkey. He knows LaLiga is demanding, tough... We're all going to help him adapt as quickly as possible. He won't play tomorrow - he didn't arrive in the same conditions as the other players and he'll have to work his way in slowly but surely."

"Sevilla-Tottenham is always going to be an attractive game even if it's in preseason"

"Sevilla-Tottenham is always going to be an attractive game even if it's one of the first games in preseason. There'll be many top players, two big clubs... they managed to get into the Champions League and we made history this year qualifying for it for the third year in a row. We have to prepare ourselves well to do it again this year, every year it's even harder, and this match is the first step. We're going into it motivated."

Finishing up, Lopetegui spoke of his confidence in that the club would have the best squad possible for competing at the highest level this season: "We want to have the best team possible to compete in LaLiga and the Champions League. The club will work hard to replace important outgoings and to bring in more players for competition within the team to grow."