Gaizka Garitano: "We are in a good moment and we have to continue with the same intensity”

Gaizka Garitano is well aware Eibar are “in a good moment”, but he knows his team “must continue with the same intensity.”

During his press conference ahead of Saturday’s clash with Leganes at Ipurua, the Eibar boss admitted his team “expect a difficult game and expect to face a good Leganes.”

The Armero boss has also expressed his gratitude to the fans “for the support we have received, for coming when we play away and for the atmosphere that we have at Ipurua.”

LEGANÉS  

“It’s a direct rival. They didn’t start the season very well, but they have gone 11 games without losing and they are playing very well. It’s a direct rival who will fight to move up and we expect a difficult game.

“We are going to go up against a difficult team, one that dominates. As always, we give maximum respect to our rivals. We know their quality, but we look at Eibar.

“We also have a very good team, very good players, impressive fans and we are playing at home. With all these things, we are going to face up to every team, and we expect to face a good Leganes.”

THE TEAM

“We are in a good moment, and we have to continue. We go into it on the back of two wins, of playing well, but we don’t want that to end. Winning gives you confidence, but that confidence cannot become a lack of hunger.

“We have to continue with the same intensity, with how we are playing, playing the football we are playing. We have to try to stay at 100%, and especially when playing at home.”

IPURUA

“We have won a lot at home in the last year and a half. We feel very comfortable at Ipurua. The team is playing well, we are winning and we feel good.

“We are also winning away, and we are improving, but naturally, we are always trying to be strong at home, to take the front foot in games, and that’s what we are going to try to do this week, too.”

DEFENSIVE SOLIDARITY

“It’s a category where few goals are scored. It’s very difficult to win games while conceding a lot of goals, and we have to try to score as much as possible, to play on the attack, with a high pace, to squeeze high. We have to make sure it’s a game with a high intensity, but it’s difficult if you don’t defend well.

“We are defending well, Leganes are, too, and it’s difficult to score, but we have to try to score goals and continue without conceding. That is what is giving us the wins and why we are top.

“We have conceded very few goals, and experience tells us that if you are not a solid team, you will not have opportunities.”

INJURIES

“You are always missing players, whether that’s through cards or injuries. We have gone many months without certain players, but those who are playing are playing very well. You know that during the season, there are going to be stretches where you don’t have players, but still playing well shows the strength of the group.

“We have had important absences, but I don’t think we depend on any player. We have a lot of trust in all of the players.”

THE SAME POINTS AS LAST SEASON

“We still have four months to go and we have to continue along the same path. There are many direct rivals, but we have to look at ourselves and go game-by-game. Each game is important. You can only look at what comes, and we must continue with the same hunger that we have.

“We have to continue with that desire to win, and with the intensity that we have been playing with. There are still four months to go, and there will be all kinds of moments. We have to keep pushing.”

THE SQUAD

“It could be important that some player participates more in the final moments of a goal, but that’s what is most difficult about football. We have confidence in all. Everyone will have their moments and their minutes.

“In a competition so long, there are always times when players are more important in a certain stretch, while others are more important in another. In the end, it’s the job for all of them, and when there are some players who are usually there but aren’t, like in this game, others are sure to go out and do well. I have always believed in the importance of the group, of going out together, and I believe that we are good, and we have to continue demonstrating that.”

FANS

“They are the most important. The club and its fans are ahead of us, of the trainers, of the players, and they are the most important.

“Every day we give them thanks for the support we receive, for coming when we are playing away and for the atmosphere at Ipurua. 

“We have always been together in the good moments and the bad, and we are going to continue like that until the end.”