Victor Sánchez:
How do you feel about returning to Karaiskakis, this time as head coach of the team?
“Emotionally, it will be a very nice moment and we are looking forward to it. We have been really happy for the last two days, ever since we trained to try the pitch. But it’s not enough. We need to be full of energy in order to fulfil our goal. Passion and all these feelings are very important. The fans draw strength from the pitch and the players from the fans. We all need to stand together and put all these things together in order to win the match.”
Do you just plan to have a good display and win the game or do you want to secure qualification from the first leg?
“Our target is to have a good game and achieve a good result. We need to keep in mind that in two-legged matches, the first leg is not enough, there is always a second leg. This means that we need to play a good match in order to take advantage of our home, to not concede any goals and to score as many goals as possible so that we have the upper hand in the second leg.”
Have you decided about the starting eleven? We know that you have performed some tests in the last few days, but do you expect any last-minute changes?
“We are clear about the lineup. We hope that there will be no surprises today or tomorrow. We are clear about the players we are going to field.”
Do you know Olympiacos is the favourite for this match?
“I have learned from my experience to not believe in favourites. There is no point in the players or the coach thinking about which team is the favourite. This may be useful to you reporters, but it’s not helpful to us because it has been proven that any team can win on any pitch. We accept the responsibility that Olympiacos is a great club in Europe and is obliged to participate in the group stage and for this to happen, we must show a responsible and solemn attitude during the matches preceding the group stage.”
What is the one thing your players must have in order to achieve a qualifying result? Also, is there something troubling you?
“As I said at the beginning, the most important thing is to not concede a goal. One of the best advantages of our opponent is that they have quite good counter-attacks. We know this since the first minute we started studying our opponent. We saw that they are a team who have a good a defence and that they build their game. They have a very balanced team since they have conceded the least and scored the most goals in their championship. This proves that they have a balanced team. The most important thing for us is to not concede a goal tomorrow and to score as many goals as possible. We also need to have a balance between defence and attack.”
The main discussion these last few days is about Kostas Fortounis and which position he is better at. Will you tell us what you think since you are the coach?
“Kostas Fortounis has proven in his career that he is able to play in various positions. It is very important for us that he can play in many positions and we have tried him in various positions. Additionally, the whole thing is fine by him and he can play well in any position, so we are not worried. It’s very important for us that our roster has many players that can play in many positions. There is Fortounis and there is Chori as well and this is important because it helps us build our game in attack. And this is not convenient for us. We have worked really hard the last few days in order to deal with the qualifying round. We have worked a lot and many players worked hard on their physical condition and as a result face pains and fatigue, but this does not bother them since they feel ready for these matches.”
Does the fact that previous encounters against Israeli teams were not successful, count? In fact, not only they were not successful, but refereeing in those matches was not favourable to Olympiacos.
“Statistics and all these stories do not help us given the match we are playing tomorrow. These may help other people who only talk about them. We do not bother with stories from the past. We focus all our energy in order to be ready and able to achieve the best possible result.”
Alejandro Domínguez:
Is the wish of the players to participate in the group stage enough to overcome current problems given that that you are playing against an opponent you are not familiar with?
“I believe that we always have the zest and the will to participate in this competition. We have prepared very well and we improve every day. The will is not enough; we also need to be smart and give our 100% against our opponent in order to achieve our target.”
To us, this qualifying match looks like travelling to the unknown in the sense that we are not familiar with Hapoel. Are you familiar with Hapoel?
“We have worked quite hard on this game, we have prepared and we have enough information on our opponent in order to do our job correctly. We worked a lot, we saw videos, we are therefore prepared for tomorrow.”
Given that you are used to playing straight to the group stage of UEFA Champions League, how difficult is it for you and your teammates to adjust to this new reality?
“It’s not about whether the adjustment is easy or not. It’s what we must do this year and we must accept this. We have worked quite a lot on this and if we want to participate in the group stage, then we must overcome the obstacles.”
Olympiacos only has one available striker for this match: Ideye. Are you ready, if required, to play in a position you know and played in during your spell in Russia?
“As a team, we are prepared for anything that may happen in the match. Therefore, my teammates and I are prepared for anything that will serve the needs of the team. It depends on the thoughts and wishes of our coach. We are ready to help from any position and at any moment.”
