00:00This is the third competition of the season. Where does it rank in terms of importance? How important is it
00:06in the context of your entire season?
00:10No, it's not about ranking the competition. It's a different competition. I'm sure if you ask, probably you would prefer
00:21to win the Champions League game or the Premier League game, but there is no guarantee.
00:28You know that if you rotate or rest, you are going to win the next one. So at the end,
00:36we want to win the game, we want to play well, and that's what we're going to try tomorrow.
00:43We've spoken already this season about having to play midweek, weekend, and obviously you only played Saturday to choose the
00:50game, although there's a bit more of a break now with Bournemouth coming up.
00:53I just wonder how much workload up to now will affect team selection once again, particularly with that game against
00:59Bournemouth?
01:00No, I think it has to affect definitely because it's the third game, it's the worst scenario. It's game today,
01:08it's game today, it's game. In terms of schedule, we haven't been lucky because it's true that after this one,
01:17we have a little bit more.
01:19Before we played Bournemouth, we had a little bit more between Ipswich and Atletico Madrid and Junotis. If it's for
01:27five days in comparison to two to three days, it's a massive difference, but it is what it is.
01:31I think after the international break, also we have this period, I think we are playing in nine, ten days,
01:39four games or something like this, so we have to get used to this.
01:42Is it impossible then to go as strong as you would like in terms of that selection, particularly with being
01:47Premier League opposition as well?
01:49No, you can go, you can decide and put the same players every game. The problem is there is going
01:54to be a moment where they are going to be very tired and there is more risk of injury.
02:03But that's why we cannot say it doesn't work for anyone. There are players who play every three days, they
02:08have no issues, they are very robust, they can accept it, their performances don't change too much.
02:15And there are other players where the risk is bigger, the performances are different and also we are in a
02:27process where I have to learn who is ready to play three, four games in a row every two, three
02:33days and who needs a rest so the performance level doesn't get affected.
02:40I think I have it in my mind quite clear with some of them but with others is new even
02:47for them because they haven't played as many games and we are learning.
02:54Can I just ask them from what you're saying, do you feel this squad is big enough to cope with
02:59the Premier League, with Europe and with two cup competitions that I'm kicking?
03:05I'm very happy with the squad, you know, I value a lot the players we have. If we win games
03:13the squad will look amazing and fantastic, if we don't win there are going to be problems, if it's not
03:19the depth it's going to be whatever.
03:21But I think we will see also tomorrow players that we haven't seen still and I'm really looking forward to
03:30see because I feel they are going to play well or they can help us and probably they still haven't
03:37had the chance.
03:42Yes.
03:46Yes.
03:47Yes.
03:52Yes.
03:53Yes.
03:53Yes.
03:53Yes.
03:53Yes.
03:53I have.
03:54I have.
03:55The thing is if you ask me how, I don't know, new players, Jeremy Jacket is going to deal with
04:01playing every three days during two months, I don't know because he hasn't done it.
04:07You know, so we are in a territory where you have to go like talking to the players feeling how
04:14he recovers.
04:15We have some other players experience have done it.
04:19I know they can do it because he has done it before.
04:23We have the experience he has performed doesn't get the performance level so affected with the younger ones, with the
04:30ones coming from abroad.
04:31But this is more question marks for them and for me and for everyone. And we will have to be
04:37studying case by case. Yes.
04:59No, I understand the frustration the other day because we were also frustrated, you know, because I think we were
05:03coming from two good games and we were considering, okay, it's a step forward.
05:09Atletico Madrid and we wanted like, no, now it's going to be a step forward, step forward, no, and then
05:13it's a step backwards. The performance level is not like the two other days.
05:19But this happens in football. I think we have to accept it in terms of there are going to be
05:25ups and downs in this process.
05:29But we have clear that where we want to go is more towards where we've been. Atletico Madrid, that's the
05:37kind of style, that's the kind of football that we want.
05:42And I think we now is the key is like the consistency to perform like this.
05:51Will you change the goalkeeper tomorrow? Yes.
05:54How do you see the goalkeeping department in terms of, obviously, Alisson's in his last year, this contract?
06:00Hamadashi had a difficult first year here and then the club obviously invested a lot of money in doing improvements
06:05in the next summer.
06:06So how do you see that dynamic?
06:08I think Alisson is, I think there are little doubts with Alec. He's proven, he's playing very well.
06:17I also rate Giorgi very highly. I know him from his years also in Spain. I told him, no? We
06:28tried to sign him for Bournemouth before I came here and for me he's a very good keeper.
06:35And he's going to start tomorrow, yes.
06:38Is Joe Gomez fit?
06:40With Joe, I think he's training with the team. I think he's going to be available for tomorrow and now
06:47it's a matter of deciding how much he can play or what's the best thing to do, yes.
07:04Probably the most frustrated, yes, because the presidents were, like, very good.
07:14We were coming from in the same week winning two games and we wanted to continue that line, win the
07:20third one and be like a push, no, looking forward.
07:25And it was a step backwards. I think we were not good enough, especially offensively and, yes, it was frustrating,
07:38yes.
07:42I want to ask you a little bit about the ability of your midfield to win the ball back. It's
07:46a big part of your philosophy.
07:48I think, looking back on the game on Saturday, starting there, I think there were three out of 14 round
07:53draws and then there were four forwards.
07:56You mentioned the attacking problems. Do you think that played a bigger part in some of that?
08:01Yes, compared to the previous games, I think we won the ball a lot lower in the pitch.
08:09So every time, sometimes it happens, we didn't concede a lot. The only big chance we conceded, it was our
08:15goal kick that we messed up after we defended well.
08:19But we were recording the ball always very low. And when this happens, you have to attack always against eleven
08:25players.
08:26And it's more difficult to make the difference. The previous games, I think we were able to win it a
08:31lot higher and then use our quick transitions,
08:37attack against less players, use better the space. And as you said, this is key in our system.
08:44We need to recover the ball as high as possible because it makes the offensive side a lot easier.
08:53And the situations to attack against 1v1s or less against less, they are bigger than if you recover the ball
09:03always in your half of the pitch.
09:22Yes, I talked to Xavi, I talked to Virgil, but are private conversations. And definitely it's not something that I
09:32can say, you know.
09:34But yes, I know Xavi very well. He was the other day here watching also our game against Atletico Madrid.
09:41And we've been talking, yes.
09:54I think he's not close to training with the team. He's training alone, but he's started touching the ball.
10:05Definitely I want him as quick as possible already. But he's long-term injuries. I think Leon is a little
10:12bit ahead of him.
10:15And still, it's going to take some time for Connor, yes.
10:34Yes, I said and I accepted and I think I agree with what he said. But it's not a matter
10:41of just the midfielders.
10:42For me, it's a matter of something more collective than the midfielders. When we've been good collectively, the midfielders have
10:51looked a lot better and have recovered more duels and have won more balls.
10:56But it's not just because they are winning duels, because they played better today. It's because we are helping them
11:01more to win the duels.
11:03It's like the defenders, no? The defenders, if you, the ones up front are doing their job very well and
11:08defenders look very good because all the balls that arrive, they arrive not clean.
11:14If we are allowing them defending 1v1 all the time and being comfortable on the ball and we are not
11:20aggressive, our defenders also will struggle.
11:23I think when the players in front of you are doing their job, you look a better defender, you look
11:29a better midfielder, you win more duels because there are easier duels.
11:33Because the ball doesn't come as clean. The ball arrives, but arrives not in the best condition and then you
11:40have more chances to win duels.
11:42So it's, I think, much more collective than just because, you know, you're thinking, I changed this by this, so
11:49this one doesn't win duels, the other one wins duels.
11:52No, probably there is something more collective going and that's the help we have to give to our defenders, the
11:59help we have to give to our midfielders,
12:01so everyone looks better. When the team plays well, everyone looks better and that's why the key is that we
12:07all collectively play well.
12:08And then everyone looks smarter, looks better, looks better in a better position, but it starts from the collective side
12:18for me.
12:21Okay, thank you.
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