Mendilibar: There's no formula against opposition like Barcelona

Speaking today in his pre-match press conference ahead of Saturday's encounter against FC Barcelona (Ipurua, 16:15 CET), José Luis Mendilibar stressed that "Against opposition like them there's no formula to it, the key is for us to just be ourselves, be assured and not have any doubts about what we have to go out there and do".

"We're feeling good, we're enjoying one of our best spells of the season and we've been performing pretty well and getting good results for a couple of months now. We know what we're coming up against. Even if we perform very well, it'll all depend on how they play".

"They're a very good side, one of the best around, with some really fine players and a great coach. At the end of the day, regardless of how well we play, if they're on top of their game, it'll be very tough for us to do anything. We'll be focusing on ourselves, trying to play our usual game and if we do that, we'll have to then see whether we've got any chance of winning the match".

"We're in good shape both mentally and physically and the players are daring enough to try and do things out on the pitch. It doesn't matter how we fare on Saturday, in our next game we'll keep doing what we do".

Mendilibar insisted that "our playing style" doesn't change "regardless of the opposition". "I'm not one for systems, for me it's all about the philosophy. We've established our blueprint and are comfortable with it and it isn't affected by who we put out there or the system we use. The systems change throughout the course of a game".

"I'm sure that they'll be coming here to win, I don't know what sort of side they'll put out, but they won't be giving anything away and their squad list will feature their best players at this moment in time. They've got their Champions League game coming up, but right now their coach will be insisting that their sole focus is on the game here at Ipurua. Their big hitters will be sure to play".