Looking at the scoreboard after a preseason game is anecdotal. The Athletic lost in its summer premiere against the St. Gallen and then it was imposed on Dynamo Kiev and to Borussia Dortmund. That is, they fell to the most affordable rival and won against two teams that will play the Champions. Everything is relative and Marcelino was in charge of making it clear after defeating the Germans yesterday at the closing of the stage in Swiss.
“The results are getting us nowhere. If we win, you win; and if you lose, you lose ”, said the Spaniard. The roadmap established for the summer does not change one iota: “I am not going to modify my way of acting or the way I train because there is a result against him. St. Gallen or we have won the Dortmund”. The idea is to “insist” on what is being done well “because it strengthens” the block. “It is important that we are able to develop it against good teams,” he added. Marcelino.
Reached the pre-season equator in the Athletic, the coach makes a “very good” balance of what has been done to date: “I see a very good work attitude and an absolute predisposition to do what we work and how we want to play. From that point of view, this is what satisfies the coach the most ”.
What has been the best and worst of the first three weeks of work? The positive part, for Marcelino, “Is the progression, attitude and wanting to do things as a group and trust what is proposed”. It is time to lay the foundations of what the course will be and the coach grants it a capital significance. On the other side of the scale are “injuries.” The lions are accumulating in the infirmary: “Although they are not of much importance, they do slow us down a bit.”
In addition, the annoyances have been primed “with players who can be important throughout the competition.” Of course, there is an absence that does more damage, over time, than the rest. “We have the loss of Yuri for several months, this is the worst. Iker, Iñigo Martinez, now Yeray has problems … any footballer who does not train and stops in training is what worries you the most. Fortunately, so far they are very minor issues, “he explained. Marcelino.
Yeray had to retire in the first half in front of the Dortmund Due to the reappearance of the discomfort in the patellar tendon that has been dragging since the end of last season. However, it does not seem that it will be anything serious. “He was unlucky because it was on a play in which his leg was left behind, but the pain was not persistent and now he is much better. We believe that it will be mild, “said the coach.