Pablo Guede made his debut at the helm of Málaga at La Rosaleda in a vibrant match against Valladolid. The blue and white team was up 2-0 and with 2-2 on the scoreboard they had chances to take all three points. The Argentine is very clear that this must be the starting point and demands a minimum from his players: “From here, up. We cannot lower the intensity and the dedication”.
Close to win: “It was a tremendous match for both teams. At times we were able to counter Valladolid, at times we couldn’t dominate them because they have a very good game. The point is fair. When you get 2-0 you think you have it there, but with a team like Valladolid, which has 25 goals in the last 11 games, it’s not easy. We generate, we don’t keep the draw. We created chances in the second half to be able to score a goal. They had them too. More than anything, I prefer the attitude, the desire of the players. From here forward. We cannot lower the intensity and the dedication”.
Good starting point: “The intensity and delivery has to be the same. It will not go down, but not because I say so, but because they want to. Everything that happened today is a caress before them, who needed it. They flipped. It has to be from the inside out. If today the team hadn’t run and scored and played as they did, there would have been 20,000 who would have screwed us. From then on, we have to keep putting everyone in to continue adding points, which is what we have to do”.
Debut on the bench at La Rosaleda: “It is difficult to stay with a moment alone. The emotions are mixed. One has to be focused on the game, involved one hundred percent, but see how people supported, how they pushed. That last foul we had there… It makes your hair stand on end. We are going to go through many more of those moments if we continue to have the dedication that we are having. Words of thanks to everyone.”
Coach Responsibility: “All the responsibility lies with the players. I saw it like this from the first day I arrived. It is one hundred percent of the footballers. Forever. I believe in that. I always say. I am convinced that they are the players. The players have to transmit to the people every game what we transmit today, beyond winning, drawing or losing”.
Two goals conceded in 5 minutes: “I was speaking for the changes. I didn’t see Valladolid’s second goal, I don’t even know what happened. Valladolid attacks from all sides, from the right, from the left, from the inside… They have unbalanced players on all lines. What we cannot afford is the first goal. There we do have to improve, we have to take a step forward because Valladolid has the ability to score in any way, also from set pieces. But they can’t score us a goal like that. We have to work on it yes or yes”.
Stops of Dani Martin: “The goalkeeper is here to stop. He would highlight the team, not a single player. If we look at the scoring chances that Valladolid has and their last outings, the goals they have scored, it is also to the credit of the whole team to be able to counteract the great virtue they have in attack. When we were patient with the ball, we always got to the goal to be able to score another goal. I would highlight everyone.”
Physical appearance of the equipment: “I’m not worried about anything, really. I arrived and what I saw in the matches was transmitted to me on the field. We are trained to make that physical effort. If not, I wouldn’t require that effort from them because they would all end up breaking or I would have to make five changes together. I demand of them because I know that they can give it, I know that they have it and I know that they are physically very well”.
Change of system, from three plants to a line of four: “You had to counter them. Andrés had a card, otherwise he would not have exchanged it. The yellow one upset me. They attacked most of the time on the left side.”
Three center backs and two lanes: “They have a great inside game. I was looking to force them a bit so that they would play more on the outside, shoot crosses and be able to defend. He wanted to make us strong inside, try to make a six against five inside, leave a one against one on the outside. I loved the team’s work.”
Pacheta says that Malaga should not suffer from relegation: “We have to be thinking about Leganés. We, to ours. The best thing that can happen to you in football is not having to depend on others. It is up to us to be higher or lower. The only thing we have to do is think about Leganés now, how we are going to win, how they can beat us, and that has to be the path of these seven weeks that we have left. Then we will see where the League puts us. 95 or 98 percent of the time, the League puts you where you need to be. I don’t want to waste time, just think about Leganés, which is what it’s about. It is what depends on us”.
Two goals for: “We had chances to score more goals. We worked on the first goal, we knew that behind the central defenders coming from the second line, we could hurt them. I fail, I get up and again. I didn’t see any player wailing or complaining. That’s what it has to be, in football you learn from your mistakes. If you regret, you don’t grow. That allowed the team to continue scoring chances”.
Reset the locker room mentally: “I didn’t have to reset anything. I didn’t have that feeling. I did put a line on them: from here up. We can’t lower what we did today. We can win, lose or draw, this is football. But from there up.”
Live the crouching matches: “I can’t watch the games any other way. Is incredible. And the workouts. Don’t ask me why, I got used to it since I started. It’s crazy of me. I can’t help it.”
Clothing with the Málaga shield on the bench: “Forever”.