Julen Lopetegui
First team

LOPETEGUI: "THEY HAVE A CLEAR WAY OF PLAYING, WHICH IS GOING FOR THEIR OPPONENTS"

23/02/2022
"Their players can play in many other leagues, no doubt about it"

Julen Lopetegui has given his pre-match press conference ahead of tomorrow's clash with GNK Dinamo Zagreb, in the UEFA Europa League Knockout Round Play-Off Second Leg. The manager began by stating that "we're aware of Dinamo's potential, not just Orsic and his regular hat-tricks, but also Petkovic, Juric... They have quality and strength in the middle and have a clear idea of how to face their opponents. Tomorrow we'll try to counter that. It will be far more difficult tomorrow than in Sevilla". 

"They have a clear way of playing, regardless of the result, which will be even stronger tomorrow. They go for their opponents and that's what they will do, they have the players for it. I'm expecting them to be intense, aggressive, strong... That's what we're expecting from the match. We have to focused on our answer to that, as that's what we can control", he continued.

"They dominate their league and basically exclusively prepare for European clashes, so they compete at a high level"

Lopetegui also commented that "they dominate their league and basically exclusively prepare for European clashes, so they compete at a high level. They're used to it. Each tie is different and you can't compare leagues. Their players can play in many other leagues, no doubt about it".

The coach then spoke about Jules Koundé: "He's still a very young lad and he's really grown. Because of that growth, a lot is asked of him. He's had a few knocks this year and he's lived with that. He's in the final stages of that, it's not simple and it's all part of the player's condition and fitness. He always tries to help the team and we think that he'll be able to confidently play in the final stretch of the season".

"Martial isn't here, so we're fully focusing on those who are. When he recover he can help us. The most important match of the week is tomorrow, that's what we're focusing on", he concluded.