Mendilibar: If we're ourselves and play without any fear we'll be in with a chance of winning
The Armeros boss travels to Gran Canaria with a full squad
Speaking today in his pre-match press conference ahead of Saturday's clash against UD Las Palmas, SD Eibar coach, José Luis Mendilibar, declared that "If we're at 100% and play without any fear, we'll be in with a chance of winning".
The Armeros' boss is set to take all members of his 23-man squad to Gran Canaria, given that, in addition to the game, the team are set to hold two training sessions (tomorrow, Friday and on Sunday) at the islanders' Barranco Seco training ground.
In Mendilibar's view, Las Palmas "are a different sort of side compared to those we've come up against so far. They're a small club, just like us and a host of others, but their style of play if different. They take a lot of risks when they're on the ball and like to play between the lines. Technically they're very good and they're daring enough to try to do things out on the pitch. I imagine that their coach will have instilled that confidence in them".
"In view of the style of football played by both teams, if they play out from the back, they're capable of hurting us, but if we manage to dispossess them at any point, we'll end up hurting them. We're two completely different teams that both enjoy playing in the opposition's half but with different weapons".
When quizzed about the islanders' undefeated record on home soil so far this term, Mendilibar insisted that this merely means that "they're ever closer to being beaten". "I'm not saying that they're going to lose this game, but just that their first defeat is ever nearer. They play good football and given their playing style, even though they've got less points that we have, people pay more attention to them than they do us".
Mendilibar went on to express his belief that his side are "in good shape". "The teams we've faced so far see us as being opposition that are tough to beat and I'm happy with all of the players".
"I don't think that we're ever on cloud nine, or that we'll hit rock bottom if we lose one game. Overall, the team is in good shape. Apart from the odd result, I think that we've competed in all areas. We've had things go against us, just as we've seen has happened to other teams, but we've also shown that we're capable of turning games around".