“We must demand ourselves to improve what we did last season”

Survivor of 2019, first year in Second. “Málaga is the team where I have spent the most years at a professional level. I consider myself a privileged person and I am proud that it is in a club and a city like this. From the first year, Hicham and I stayed ”.

Is it being a difficult season for you? “When you don’t play, you have to demand a lot more from yourself on a day-to-day basis on a physical level. Also on a mental level. It is difficult because a footballer always wants to play. Perhaps the hardest days are those of the game, the pre and post-games because you want to feel like a participant and that is a difficult situation to assimilate. Players are ambitious and we always want to be there. I always try to prepare and focus on what only depends on me, on training myself as well as possible so, when I have to play, to be at the level I should be ”.

Physical and tactical ability. “Satisfaction for maintaining the line that the team brings. A doubt that the player who enters and is not playing always generates is that the line continues to be maintained, that the team achieve positive results. And that is a satisfaction for the player who enters, in this case me. The only thing I have done is push myself and be very self-critical of myself and give my best every day to be prepared ”.

Better performance at home than out. “We are trained to win in any field. We have shown that, regardless of the rival, we compete from you to you to everyone. In the Second Division, the dynamics have little influence on this game because Oviedo has won away from home and that gives them an emotional boost to change and reverse their situation. At home we are doing well unlike last season. La Rosaleda is helping us. It’s a nice challenge ”.

Tight schedule. Can it be considered good to add five points again in three games? “We must be an ambitious team and not sign anything. Whenever we face a game we must have the idea of ​​winning it regardless of the rival we face. La Liga is beautiful and there is a very small margin of points between those at the top and those at the bottom. The weeks that there are three games can give you a jump up or down. We are going to think about the match against Oviedo, which will be very difficult due to the situation in which they arrive after a win away from each ”.

What analysis is done in the dressing room when Málaga plays away from La Rosaleda? “As the games progress, I think we have been improving. We have pushed ourselves more and more and we have corrected mistakes. The last game in Huesca we were very close (to winning) and what we still have is to improve our consistency during the 90 ‘. If it is true that at home in the beginning we are being strong and we get an advantage that makes it easier for us to win these games. Away from home is an improvement that we must have ”.

Are you aware that this team is going to demand more than in the previous season? “We must demand more of ourselves. I think the goal is to improve what we did last season. Logically the scenario is not the same. Last year we were the lowest budget in the category and we had to get permanence for this team to continue in the professional category. We did it in the previous two seasons that were very tough. This year, with the tranquility, normality and stability that the club lives, with the large squad and the signings that have come, I think we must be demanding and set ourselves the goal of being above last year and being ambitious ” .

How does the future look for Lombán at Málaga? “It is a question that is asked a lot to the players. The future of a player is always unpredictable because we never know where we are going to be and we always have to look, not at the weekend, from day to day because you don’t know when you are going to play ”.

Individual and collective aspects. “It is difficult for a player to stand out when a team goes bad. I am at the level of the team. I consider myself a very self-critical person. I always believe that I can improve. And I hope if I continue to enjoy minutes, which does not depend on me, but on the coach who must decide between the large squad he has. The day that I am not self-critical of myself, I will have to ask myself other types of questions ”.

His famous long shipments. “The difference compared to last season is that we are more players. That allows you to have different player profiles depending on the rival or the situation of the team. In this case, I try to contribute the best I can and know to the team. As the days progress, we will get to know each other because there are new people and everything has its process ”.

Is there a clause per game played to renew? “No. It simply exists at the end of the season that depends on both parties. If we both agree, it will be possible to extend one more season. In the event that either party does not agree, the contract will be broken and it will depend on the personal situation, from the club to me and from me to the club. It depends on the feelings we are having during the season ”.

He has played with Peybernes and Juande. Who do you look best with? “I am going to trust the numbers. Clean sheet with both. I have found myself comfortable with both and I have no preference whatsoever. My mission is to enjoy the field as much as I can and help those around me. Logically, when you are on the field, the relationship you have with your partner in the center of defense influences because that helps you understand yourself much better in critical and area situations. Off the pitch I have an extraordinary relationship with both of them and that helps us when we are together ”.

Return to Asturias, his land. “I like to go because I was born there and I have a family. I’ve been away longer than at home. They are 16 years old. It is always special. Oviedo is a former team of mine where I have been trained. I will always be grateful to them because they have been a very important part of my training both as a player and as a person ”.