Garitano: “We’re in second place and we have to defend that position to the death”

Eibar coach Gaizka Garitano has spoken about the fact that the team are now second in the table, insisting that “we have to defend that position to the death” because “we need to make it very difficult for anyone to take away from us what we’ve achieved so far”.

In Friday’s press conference, held ahead of Saturday’s game at Ipurua (16:15 CET) against Burgos, the coach also praised the opponents and said that “it’s no coincidence that they are where they are in the standings”.

ON BURGOS CF

“They have only conceded seven goals so far this season away from home. They are a very hard-working team, able to cover all the gaps very well no matter what system you play. They are very strong inside the penalty area, and it’s very difficult to even get in there. The other day against Granada, they played brilliantly for 70 minutes. They also have good and dynamic players out wide, while they can shoot well from outside the box. It’s not just organisation and good defending alone that wins you games.”

“The chances you get against them aren’t very clear because they put a lot of people inside the box to defend crosses. We’ll have to try to play a good game, we’ll have to be patient and we’ll also have to stop their attack because they have a good counter-attack and good set-piece play, with tall players and Curro putting the ball in. It’s no coincidence that they are where they are in the standings, and they deserve it because they’re in good form.”

“When you have to try to break down a wall, it’s hard to do that in just 10 or 20 minutes. You have to keep going, keep going, keep going and be patient. We’re going to have to defend too because they’re also going to go up and come out with danger. When there are only a few fixtures left, every game is difficult and even more so against a team that has proved their worth across the 30 rounds held so far. They are where they are on merit and they are one of the candidates for promotion.”

“They optimise their goals, as their goals usually earn them points because they concede very few. We know what we have to do, we know their strengths and they know ours too. We’ve played each other several times and it’s always one of the toughest games. I have a lot of confidence in the players. We know how to get out of complicated situations and I have a lot of confidence in everyone.”

ON OVERCOMING ADVERSITY

“I really think we have adapted to the difficulties. We’ve been without full-backs for a month and it’s difficult because our way of playing is based on having attacking full-backs out wide. Not having them this month has made us completely change the way we play. Even so, we’ve still been competitive and we’re getting the wins we need to stay up near the top. It’s important to be able to adapt in this type of long season. You’re always going to have problems, and we and our opponents will have challenges because of injuries or suspensions. We adapt to what we have because we have a lot of confidence in everyone.”

ON BEING IN SECOND PLACE

“At the moment, after 30 matchdays, we have been the second-best team. Let’s see how it is after 42 rounds. Right now we’re in second place and we have to defend that position to the death and make sure that no one takes away something that belongs to us now. We are going to fight and scrap for it. We need to make it very difficult for anyone to take away from us what we’ve achieved so far.”

“I have always said that you are going to be better as a player, as a coach and as a team when you face difficulties. In life too, when things go wrong, when you have problems or when you have to reinvent yourself, that's when you learn the most. That’s what has happened to us and, if this team is good at anything, it’s that, the ability to adapt, to come out on top when it seems you’re left for dead. When it’s the most difficult is when you learn the most about people.”