LAS ROZAS (MADRID), June 12 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Athletic Club goalkeeper Unai Simón affirmed this Monday that when Luis de la Fuente removed him from the title after the first match of the 2019 European Under-21 Championship he did not put “the cross” on him but rather “looked at the best for the team”, and he also stressed that the Absolute “is in good hands” with the man from La Rioja and that, on a personal level, he is not worried about the possible loss of ownership in favor of Kepa Arrizabalaga.
“He did not put the cross on me, they are decisions that coaches have to make. It was to look for the best for the team and he decided to put Antonio (Sivera) and thanks to that we won the European Championship. If I had played against Belgium, maybe we would have lost and we would not have qualified,” said Unai Simón at a press conference.
In addition, he recalled that he later played as a starter at the Tokyo Olympics where he felt “all the confidence” of the La Rioja coach, whom he has known since the Under-18s and with whom he has “a close professional relationship.” “Now it’s nice to coincide at the highest level of the Absolute,” he admitted.
“The figure of the coach will always be discussed, Luis Enrique’s was also. We don’t think about the past or what happened in Glasgow, we have to prepare ourselves to win against Italy and what happened before will serve as a lesson for us , but it doesn’t have to weigh us down. It’s a title and we have to fight to get it with this team”, stressed the Biscayan about the coach and if doubts were created after losing in March with Scotland (2-0).
In this sense, he made it clear that, “of course”, the team is “in good hands”. “I have known him since he was 18 years old and for me he has had spectacular professional growth, he is not the same coach and already at the Games he was trained to direct this team. What I have seen, he transmits to us and the tools he gives us is what is necessary to face this competition. For me and the rest of my teammates, he has all our confidence”, he settled.
Besides, Unai Simón ensured that the one of Haro prefers to send “brief and concise messages so that they fit” before the important parties. “We all have too many things on our minds before a game and Luis is very motivating in that sense, he doesn’t get too upset, he’s a calm guy who knows what he’s up to at all times,” he pointed out.
Simón returns to the national team after missing the March concentration due to physical problems, but he is not worried about whether Kepa Arrizabalaga will start or play. “In the end, playing or not is a situation that does not depend on me. So far I have been playing until March and the decision made by the coach will have to be respected. I respected her when I played and I will do it in the same way if I don’t play out of respect to the rest of my teammates and goalkeepers who have not been able to come to the concentration”, he stressed.
“If the coach changes in two years, there will be doubts about which goalkeeper to put in or not. I don’t know who is going to play against Italy, it doesn’t worry me, honestly. I’m ready to play and if not, for the next one, and if game I will have to train more. The ownership debates do not matter to us, only performing at the highest level for ourselves and for the level of the team”, added the Athletic Club goalkeeper.
He also asserted that he is not “nobody” to say that he deserves to be a “starter”. “I still have a lot of room for improvement and I can be a much better goalkeeper. Merits aren’t worth anything, Luis has to make the decision,” explained the Basque, who indicated that the greatest nuance with the game of the new coach’s goalkeepers has been “above all in the matter of start, looking for a little more direct play and the line of forwards when the rival presses”.
PRAISE FOR VINÍCIUS AND SUPPORT FOR MACKAY
Unai Simón was asked about his exchange of shirts with Vinícius Jr after the match against Real Madrid and he remarked that it was for “a hospitalized girl” and that “a friend had asked him for it because it was what he was most excited about”.
“The issue of racism must be resolved as soon as possible and everyone is doing their bit. Vinícius seems to me to be an exceptional player, a world ‘top’, he has shown it and I think that on and off the field he is a very good person”, he praised to the end of Real Madrid.
He also gave his support to the Deportivo de La Coruña goalkeeper Ian Mackay, who was the subject of much criticism and insults on social networks for his performance this Sunday against Castellón in the defeat that cost his team to move forward in their attempt to promote to Second division.
“I don’t think he can understand what he is going through and I give him my full support, no matter how many words he says, only he can get out of this situation. You have to treat the issue delicately because we suffer harassment many times and it is not legal because it is public figures. He’s had a great season and ‘Depor’ wouldn’t have gotten to where they’ve gotten without him and you have to appreciate that work”, he declared.