Giannis Maniatis
The match against Malmö is a really special match for Olympiacos since it is match nr. 100 in the UEFA Champions League group stage for our side.Would you like to combine this with a positive outcome and at the same time have the best start in the history of the club in the UEFA Champions League group stage?
We came to Sweden to win.We will not only focus on the fact that this is match nr. 100 for our side in Europe; we also need to be focused since the onset of the match, it’s a really difficult match and I really believe that we have proved what we can do, as we did in the match against Atlético.What we need to do is to show our good side on the pitch and win the match.
Malmö’s coach also said that Olympiacos won Atlético by accident and that Salzburg is better than Olympiacos and will therefore not have any problems…
What I have to say is that our win against Atlético was a really great win.No Malmö coach can dispute this.Everyone saw that we made a great effort and that we won this match with our fans’ assistance, on home soil.The Malmö coach should probably take a look at our club’s history.Tomorrow (editor’s note: today) we celebrate 100 European matches, therefore this proves something.Olympiacos always participates in the European competitions and it’s not nice for him to be showing this lack of respect for our club.
The two latest matches of Olympiacos in Patras against Panachaiki and in Peristeri against Atromitos were not among this year’s best displays.Was this due to some minor fatigue or was this a happenstance that the club will overcome?
First of all, Champions League matches are totally different in comparison to the local competitions matches.As we saw before the match against Atlético as well, our display in the championship matches was not the best possible.Our display was not good in particular in the match against Atromitos, maybe we were not that focused.We of course need to change this.Tomorrow’s match is really difficult, we have to show our good face.Following the match against Atromitos, we have all realised that we need to show a different face and I believe that we are all ready to prove this on the pitch.
Olympiacos always has a hard time in Scandinavia.Have you discussed anything particular, have you worked on something particular during the training sessions to make sure Olympiacos will get a positive result in Malmö?
I think that we will not focus on the club’s history in Scandinavia.What we need to do on the pitch is what our coach will tell us to do, what we will discuss with him, the analysis he will perform tomorrow as regards Malmö and following this, I believe that our display tomorrow will lead us to victory.
This past week, have there been conversations with Michel, with the president? Is the club ready to answer back?
Definitely!We came prepared.I honestly believe that we all realised our mistake in Peristeri, namely the fact that we were not focused and not serious enough in our play.The coach talked to us, the president as well and I believe all players realised what needs to be done tomorrow and in general from now on, and we are now ready to prove this on the pitch.
Michel
The Malmö coach said that his side is the favourite and that they will win.What do you reply to this?
I agree…Malmö I totally agree with everything Malmö’s coach said. I agree. He seems to know our club’s history really well and he respects our club, therefore we agree with him.Tomorrow we celebrate 100 matches in Europe, we will therefore try to be a respectable opponent, to get the result we weed and also get the joy we need.We feel really proud to be a Greek club.We also feel proud that we can play in European competitions, with the participation of clubs from all over Europe.But we totally agree with Malmö’s coach because as he said we came here to fight, despite the fact that we are the lesser team.If he is as successful on the pitch as he is in press rooms, then there is not much we can do…
Will Jimmy Durmaz participate in tomorrow’s match?
Malmö’s coach must definitely know whether he will play or not…He has studied Olympiacos a lot, he knows everything about us, therefore you can ask him, I am sure he knows…
This whole story following the quotes by Malmö’s coach – given that undoubtedly this is the first time we see someone underestimating their opponent that much in this level – how can it affect the club? The reasonable reaction would be “to answer back on the pitch.”Is the Norwegian trying to mess with your mind?
I honestly tell you that I am totally unaffected and so are the players.On the contrary, we were amused.I am sorry to have to say this now, but when I was young I was in a club where the first thing they taught me was to respect my opponent a lot…I wish to inform Malmö’s coach that this club was Real Madrid.I would also like to inform him about various things as regards my history in football.And this is something that taught me that we must always totally respect our opponents.We know that each coach has his own way, but I honestly look at the club we will play against tomorrow the same way I looked at Atlético Madrid a fortnight ago, namely a club that deserves to be in this competition and that will do everything in the match, as we all do…
And this is why I honestly say that I am neither angry nor distracted because of what was said.I wish our opponent in tomorrow’s match the best possible luck, I totally respect their club; had the coach played in a club such as Real Madrid or had he managed a club such as Olympiacos, he would understand what we tell him.
I do not know if he wants to be on the spotlight, but I feel that the players should always be the stars.In any case, if he was looking for his moment of glory, he could wait for Atlético Madrid or Juventus, two clubs that are more famous than our club.My moments of glory are in the past since I was a player when I was young and the players are the stars.We speak neither Norwegian nor Swedish, but I am sure he will understand us.
(Editor’s note: A this point and after the interpreter had started translating what the coach of Olympiacos had said, Michel intervened and pointed out as regards the translation:”We do not doubt the translation, but we wish to make sure that my intention is not bad, we want our words to be translated to the point.To show our respect to Swedish journalists.Because it’s really nice to be talking about football…”).
Hareide talked a lot about Olympiacos.Would you like to tell us what you think about Malmö? Also, what is your opinion about Markus Rosenberg who has had really good displays lately?
Malmö’s coach talked about our side and in fact he did this in a bad way.I believe Malmö is a strong and dynamic side, with many quality players, such as Adu, Eriksson and Rosenberg.They have a really nice playing style, they show courage and power in their play and we are not at all amazed that they participate in the UEFA Champions League.And to conclude, we would like to say that we hope Olsen’s, Malmö’s goalkeeper, night tomorrow will not be that good.But we do not wish our opponent’s coach to be mad at us.
