MADRID, 14 Sep. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Girona FC manager Miguel Ángel Sánchez ‘Míchel’ has said that to have a chance of beating FC Barcelona at Montilivi this Sunday they will need “the ball” and to be “an aggressive team with and without the ball”, and he has stated that Barça’s Lamine Yamal is “the most differential player in LaLiga in one-on-one situations”.
“They are a team with a lot of verticality, they are doing things very well. They have won all four games. They press very well, they win the ball back quickly. Thinking about the individualities, Lamine for me is the most differential player in LaLiga in one-on-ones, because his decision-making is ‘top’ for a 17-year-old, he does everything well. His head works very quickly,” he declared in a press conference.
He also stressed that Raphinha is “in great form, he is very vertical and provides great depth”, while Robert Lewandowski “has a goal-scoring ability”. “If we are able to get the ball, it will be easier. If we are on defence for 80% of the game, it will be very difficult. The ball is very important for us, to win tomorrow we need the ball,” he warned.
On the other hand, the Madrid coach revealed that he has given his Barça players “tactical images”. “I told them that when I look at the rival, in this case Barça, I am scared, with respect and fear, I have seen the best of the rival and I know that they can hurt us. But the player does things very well. And I want to tell the fans that I am convinced that we will do things very well, and I am not talking about winning or losing. The team gives me the feeling that it is prepared. We want to be an aggressive team with and without the ball,” he insisted.
He also confirmed that he will only regret the absence of Oriol Romeu due to the ‘fear clause’ and that Yangel Herrera is in doubt, while the rest “are ready to play tomorrow”, although he did not want to reveal details about possible replacements in the midfield. “There is Ivan, there is Solis, there is Arnau, who can play in that position. I also have the possibility of putting Krejci, who has played before. Raul from the reserve team has trained with us, he will come tomorrow. We have possibilities,” he said.
He also said that he will not choose the starting eleven for Sunday with the Champions League debut next week in mind. “We always take it one game at a time. The most important thing is tomorrow’s game, the team is top and we have players who can play in various positions. Tomorrow is very important for us, it’s a great game. Barça are leading and are in great form, we have to do things very well. Tomorrow’s line-up will not be with the next game in mind,” he said.
“At the club we know that the most important thing is LaLiga, and that’s where we can grow. Tomorrow is a very important match. We need to do things well in LaLiga and not look beyond that. The players are clear about that, I’ve seen the training sessions and people are training very well, very hard, and they’re only thinking about tomorrow’s match. It’s difficult for me to make a line-up for tomorrow, some players who deserve to play won’t play. But everyone is prepared,” he concluded.