MENDILIBAR: "THEY ALL WANT TO PLAY AND COMPETE, NOT JUST BE THERE FOR THE PHOTOS"

In the preview ahead of the UEFA Europa League semi-finals, José Luis Mendilibar spoke to the press face-to-face about the crucial and exciting upcoming fixture for his team against Juventus FC. The man from the Basque Country, having overseen the final training session on Wednesday morning ahead of the match, started by comparing this knockout fixture with the one we played against Manchester United: "The most important difference between these ties was that we played well away to Juventus, which was not the same against United. The result was the same, a draw. By playing so well the other day gives us confidence to be able to replicate that performance at home. Not playing well against Manchester brings about doubt. That is the only difference between these two ties."

On his good connection with the squad, he acknowledged that he still hasn't fully got to know all of his players: "I don't know what the connection they had with their other coach was like, but I know what the one I have with them is like. I am quite close to them, certainly with the ones who want to have that sort of relationship, but it is not the same with all of them. There are some who are more open and others who are more cautious. I have to keep on getting to know the lads. Two months isn't enough to get to know all of them."

Asked about Suso, he noted how not all of the players will display the same levels of fitness ahead of the match tomorrow: "Suso hasn't said whether he is ready to start the game or if he can end it. Not all of the players are in the same condition and they all want to be, which is the good thing for me. . With some of them there are specific concerns over whether they can play for the full match or not. After speaking to them, I will have to come to a judgement."

"If they let us control the game, we will have to be patient"

Questioned on how Juventus will approach the game, he preferred to focus on what his team will have to do: "I don't know how they are going to come out, whether they are going to let us dominate the ball or not. I don't think that they will give us control of possession, they are going to want that, to cause us problems with the ball. We would then have to be accurate in putting pressure on them, defending and making it hard for them to get up the pitch. If they let us have control then we will have to be patient. We have to strike the right balance between being patient and not getting too comfortable. It's not about having the ball for the sake of it, we need to do things with it."

On the importance of the meeting, he mentioned the excitement that he has for every game in his career: "It's one of the most important matches I've been involved in, although they are all important. I imagine that you have all been involved in smaller competitions and they still generate the same excitement. This is a Europa League semi-final, it's a big game, but the matches we've had before this have been crucial too even if I haven't had as many people sitting in front of me."

José Luis Mendilibar also praised how he and his coaching staff have prepared for this encounter: "Relaxed and using our heads, without going crazy with the players because this week has been peaceful. Not letting many things from our opponent occupy space in our players' heads. We have seen a bit of our opponent and it's only been a week since we played against them, so it's fresh in the memory. We worry about ourselves."

"It appears to be a good thing to me if the fans are euphoric, we will see this tomorrow"

Furthermore, the coach spoke about the euphoria that the fans are displaying: "For the players, this is not the case, but for the fans, I am not sure. I am relaxed, I am not getting ahead of myself from what other people say. Not now nor in any other match. It appears to be a good thing to me if the fans are euphoric, we will see this tomorrow. Neither the coaching staff not the squad are speaking too much about the game, and we are not losing out heads over it."

Replying to a question on the renovation of his contract, he chose to focus on the significance of finishing the season well: "At the start I signed for three months and I was delighted. Some of you raised your hands to your heads in disbelief. The team hasn't fallen off, rather the opposite. It's important we end well what we have started."

"This isn't a case where you can just push a button, it's not that easy. The results have been pretty impressive since I arrived, but sometimes the team hasn't played as well. It's about the confidence that the players have. If you do well, you come together. If you have confidence in training and things go well there, it will be the same in a match scenario. I have said it to them many times, they have a lot of quality. They have also seen that sometimes, keeping it simply can bring about results," the coach noted.

With the return of players to Allegri's side including Bremer, Mendilibar emphasised the defensive effort that his team will have to display tomorrow right from the kick-off: "When there are players like that, what you don't want is your side having to defend in their own box. If you don't want the opposition to have chances and corners, you have to defend further up the pitch. It's the best way to stop such good players getting close to goal."

"We would be thrilled to play in a final and win the seventh title"

Finally, he highlighted the good work that Basque coaches are carrying out at the moment: "Since I have managed in the first division, Basque coaches have always done well. There are Basque coaches in LaLiga, the Premier League and in many other places. It's something we have in us. We are now in the semi-finals, we would be thrilled to play in a final and win the seventh title, but we have to respect Juventus. They are a massive club and few have what they do at their disposal."