Roberto Martinez, selector of BelgiumI praise the ability of your team to adapt to the different situations that a match demands. The Red Devils they are already working hard in the preparation of the round of 16 match against Portugal on the Charterhouse from Seville.
“We cannot change who we are. We are a dynamic team that is built on the attack. But we will have to be patient, we will have to control the game,” Martinez said at a press conference, adding that it is important to know “when you have to be. patient and when you have to be at your best in those quick attacks. “
The word “suffering” has appeared in the press conferences of the Belgian team that week ahead of the round of 16 match against the reigning European champion on Sunday at 9:00 p.m. at the stadium of The Cartuja of Seville.
“We are prepared for any scenario,” he said. Martinez, who ruled out changing his starting goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois, for the alternate, Simon Mignolet, Brujas goalkeeper with the best numbers in maximum penalties.
“No, not at all. I have never believed in this type of change,” said Martínez, who noted that “the goalkeepers must be given continuity and confidence in a very lonely position.”
The Spanish coach did not want to reveal which eleven he will use against the Portuguese. “It depends”, “we'll see” or “those decisions will be made in the next 48 hours” are the answers you provided when asked if Kevin de Bruyne or Eden Hazard will be headlines.
“De Bruyne He is in perfect physical condition and I can say the same about Axel Witsel and Eden Hazard (…) Everyone is ready, “said the coach.
“You know why this team is successful, why they have won the Eurocup and the Nations league, because they have an incredible mentality and they know how to play great games. We arrived with a lot of confidence, with a lot of 'momentum'. We have accumulated 13 victories, that is not a coincidence “
No anti-Ronaldo plan
Roberto Martinez He assured Belgium will have to be “solid, compact and defend as a team”, but assured that he has not designed an “anti-Cristiano Ronaldo plan” to contain the star of Portugal and top scorer of the Eurocup, despite the fact that “we all know that he is one of the best footballers in the world.”
“No. Obviously we have to defend very, very well. If you implement a plan against one player, others can hurt you,” he said. Martinez, who said that “Portugal has more than one threat in its attack” and listed players as Bernardo Silva, Diego Jota, Bruno fernandes, Moutinho or Pepe's “experience”.
De Cristiano said that he is still as dangerous as years ago, although he has probably changed his way of playing a bit.
“When you get a little older you adjust, you become a little more clinical in what you do. Cristiano Ronaldo he knows how to use space, he penetrates from different areas, he is an incredible aerial threat, “he said about the 35-year-old Portuguese forward.
Around with the heat of Seville and the grass of La Cartuja
Martinez did not give much importance to the state of the field of play in Seville, criticized in the three previous meetings in the tournament, and framed it within the “many elements that surround the party beyond the game.”
“The field will be in the same conditions for both teams. The information we receive from Seville is that they work to try that it is in the best possible conditions, “he said. Martinez.
The coach added that he is looking forward to training tomorrow at the stadium so that the players adapt to the field but also to the weather conditions, with maximums of 35 degrees and sun in the coming days compared to the rainy 19 degrees of the Belgian capital this Friday .
To do this, the coach plans to change “the hydration and drinks of the players” slightly, but stressed that he expects that at 21.00 local time on Sunday the field will be “around 30-31 degrees”, which would be similar to the conditions that the Belgians knew in St. Petersburg in the 2-0 of the last day of the group stage.
It will also be similar in terms of the public, because St. Petersburg it is close to Helsinki just as Portugal borders Spain, so “it will be almost a home game for the Portuguese,” he said.
“They are two teams that is a bit early for that one to face each other, but it is the nature of the tournament,” acknowledged the coach who led Belgium to third place in the tournament. 2018 World Cup in Russia.