Garitano: “To be the leader is a privilege that the team has earned, and we must defend it to the death
The Eibar head coach has made it clear his team will go out to ‘attack and win’
Gaizka Garitano believes being in first place “is an honour and a privilege” that Eibar must “defend it to the death.”
During his press conference ahead of his side’s clash with Ponferradina on Saturday, the Eibar boss believes Los Armeros must look to “play our game, attack and win.”
SNOW
“In a long season, you have to adapt to these things that can happen, to not training for a couple of days, to the snow, to the cold, to not having people for a day. It’s a long season and things always happen. I tell the players that a player’s ability to adapt makes the difference. This week, we have trained less because of the snow or on other pitches. It’s what happened and it can’t be an excuse. We are going to prepare well for the game on Saturday.”
PLAYING AWAY
“We play away again, and it’s not a problem for us. We have put on good performances away from home. Naturally, all teams prefer to play at home with the intensity of their fans, they always help you to the death. When you play away, you have to adjust, like we have in recent months, and we have to give the best version of ourselves in a stadium we know, historically, has been difficult for us when we have gone there.”
PONFERRADINA
“It’s a team that changes a lot at home compared to when they play away. At home, they are strong. We will be playing a complicated game against a team that has improved a lot since David (Gallego) arrived. To win there, we are going to need to play very well.
“They have players like Naranjo, Espiau, Lacerda, Yuri, Ojeda, Hugo Vallejo, who are very good footballers in their positions, they can score at any moment. We are very solid, we defend well and we have to try to remain solid, to defend well and, above all, do damage up top. We have to arrive in numbers, score and win the game. We always play with the intention of winning, knowing that every game has its phases.”
ATTACK AND WIN
“We have to know what’s most important is being ourselves, trying to play a good game in line with what we are doing. We know that to win there, you have to do things well. What’s important is to be ourselves, to be Eibar, to squeeze high, try to take the ball, to attack and win. The game needs to have a high rhythm, and we have to test the opposition goalkeeper. We need to be solid and together when they have the ball and dominate all phases of play.
“All teams have a need, some a little lower, some a little higher, some fight for some things, and others for others, but in this league, there is no team that doesn’t have a need to win on the weekend.”
LEADERSHIP
“When you play against first place, aside from the points, you always have the motivation to push more than on other days. I hope we have many games in this situation, where the other team is playing against first place. It’s not a problem, it’s an honour and a privilege that the team has earned, and we must defend it to the death.”