José Alberto López reappeared to get wet and comment on everything that has surrounded Málaga this seasonincluding planning and other thorny issues such as his dismissal, what happened with the truncated departure of Antoñín in January or the lack of support in the locker room in the final stretch of his time on the bench at La Rosaleda.
The technician did not hide his disappointment in the microphones of BE Malaga and broke a spear in favor of the work done in the making of the template.
Hard season: “I saw all the Málaga matches. Yes, it’s been a difficult season for everyone and it’s especially hard for the players, the people who have been at the club every day and more than anyone, the fans”.
Team Dynamics: “I don’t stop to think about those things much. When we left, and we thought about it after a hard 0-5, our feeling was that the team was going to go up. We had that conviction and that feeling. For the playoff it would not have given , because we lacked a goal, that was the reality, but to be in that group of teams that could be fighting until the end”.
Do you feel that the locker room made your bed?: “I like that you ask me that question because I know that it has been rumored about it, I have no doubts about any player in that locker room. Logically, those who do not play at a certain moment can push less, but that is not a thing in this locker room. It happens to anyone. While I was there, everything was fine, controlled, there were no extra-sports problems. The criticism focused on me, I am the coach, I am the leader of the project and I prefer that all the clubs in the world give them to me and my players leave them alone and dedicate themselves to playing. I think that’s how they were doing it”.
Antonin: “I am not going to enter into debates or criticism. Everyone knows what has happened. If I have something, it is that I am an honest and direct person. Everyone knows what happened and time puts everyone in their place.”
bad season: “Totally, a season of three coaches is a season of absolute failure. For Malaga the season has been sad and bad, that is the reality. We professionals have to do a much deeper analysis than the fans, the media or anyone outside the game. When things like the ones that have happened this season happen, you have to do a deep analysis, draw conclusions and see why that situation has come about”.
Possible reasons for the bad year: “I believe a lot in teamwork, I don’t believe in people. A coach is surrounded by many people and there are many decision-making processes that condition everything else. I believe a lot in work teams and that’s how I made it clear from the first day I arrived. There are performances of players that have not been as expected, of course, but you have to analyze why. But hey, I think the squad was well put together. Would things have been changed? Of course, but in all player who came there was a reason, what characteristics he had and what goals he brought. The month of November after the game in Las Palmas was a brutal party and all the comments about the team were great. We had not won away but we had not lost in home and we were seventh, one point from the playoff. We professionals are not amateurs who get excited about a result. The team was the same as when we lost 0-5 against Ibiza, but the results were different and the classification, also. But we came to a two-year project and we made decisions with that in mind. The moment they dismiss us, well, it’s over.”
Project: “I didn’t see that press conference, I don’t know why he was able to say it, but I am clear that a project was sold to me in the first meeting I had with Manolo, Capote and Duda. That’s why I came to Malaga. All the reflections that I have been taking is thinking about a project, there are young people like Roberto and Kevin, with an offer in January of two million for a player that nobody had in the summer. It was part of that project, giving way to young people and that They were some assets of the club. In the last stretch we have already seen what has been happening”.
Dismissal: “After the 0-5 it is clear that in any match, moment and situation, and even more so in a club like this, they can dismiss you. It was a very tough result and one that had to be digested very well, but I don’t waste too much time that does not depend on me. We were thinking of going to Miranda and winning. It was the best way to reverse and convince everyone that we had to continue being the leaders of the project. We found out late on Monday. We were preparing the week, videos and such. Manolo, José María and Capote were there. The results, there isn’t much else. You have to understand it, it’s part of the game and the job, it’s our life. If we had lost 0-1 or 0- 2 I am convinced that we would have continued”.
His role in the transfers: “Manolo is the one who decides, he is the captain of the ship. The sports directors are the ones who make the decisions, but before I said that I don’t understand this if it isn’t with teamwork, each one from their position and with their responsibilities, but in team and that’s what we did from minute one. I haven’t signed anyone, I have given my opinion on what has been asked of me and Manolo has signed what he could or wanted, but more who we could”.
Febas and Vadillo: “Until that Monday at 8 in the afternoon I gave my opinion on what was asked of me. Logically I did not get involved in the work of the sports director. Febas and Vadillo were two players who came to add and contribute things that the team lacked. They have shown it in the second lap. They have been important in timing and performance.”
0-5 against Ibiza: “That game was very conditioned. It was the only game in which we had a consensus in the coaching staff. I like to hear everyone’s opinions and know what they think. We all chose that same eleven because it was what we had at that time Until the second goal I think we were having a good game but after the second, I don’t want to think too much about it, but I think it’s a football thing and also a consequence of the immaturity that the team had due to the youth of those who were in the field. The second, the third and the fourth came in a row.”
Future: “There is nothing firm. Things flying over that can come out, but there is nothing firm.”
Hobby: “To thank them for the welcome and the treatment, which has been excellent. And to apologize because the illusion with which I came was to return it to the highest category, which is where this club, due to its fans and city, should be. This year it was complicated due to budget and many reasons, but we were convinced that with the step we were going to take next year we would achieve it. world had, but to thank them for treating me and my family”.