Besnik Hasi:
-On the fact that many have characterized tomorrow’s match against Sporting as a “final”: “It’s the only thing I hear for some time now. Final-final! This is something that must happen and it seem like it’s the end of the world! It’s not like that. I haven’t listened to anyone saying how much we must enjoy the match. We, you, the fans, the players, everyone. It’s a game for the UEFA Champions League and we must enjoy it and be glad to participate. It’s our first game and we always want to win the first game regardless of the opponent we’re facing. It’s not a final, we also have an away match against them and five other games. Therefore, it’s not a final”.
-What is the secret for Karaiskakis Stadium to become again a “fortress”: “The truth is that I don’t feel that I have to try hard to motivate my players. They’re ready. We want to make a good match and to show a nice image of ourselves. That’s the highest motivation. Also, exaggerated motivation isn’t positive. We’ll have to play in a concentrated and compact way. They must be careful and simply do their job. I’m sure our supporters will do their part. I’ve felt this atmosphere that you mentioned when I came here with Anderlecht. Our players weren’t scarred, but they felt the pressure of this stadium. They proved that they made it also against Rijeka: when we were behind in the score, they stood on the team’s side and we made it. I’m sure that they’ll do it also on tomorrow’s match. We want to end this bad streak that you mentioned, that we have few positive results in our field”.
-If he has thought about how he’ll line up the team: “First of all, I’ll play with eleven players and I’m not revealing you how we’ll play, because I would be helping the opponent to be more prepared. Tomorrow’s match is a difficult one and there are differences in the level of the Greek championship and the UEFA Champions League. We’re not going to play with 11 players behind the ball. We have to change some things and we’ll be more defensive comparing with the Greek championship. We’ll adjust our game on tomorrow’s match. If we don’t do it tomorrow, when will we do it? Against Barcelona? It’s not possible. We’ll be different from the Greek championship. If we’ll be higher or lower in the defense or in the midfield, that’s something you’ll see in the match”.
-If he thinks that Sporting is the favorite for tomorrow’s match or if they’re at the same level as Olympiacos: “If you consider the players that Sporting has bought, you’ll understand that they didn’t do it only for the championship, but also for Europe. However, we did the same. We signed players to be stronger in Europe. The teams have differences. Sporting has the possibility to play in many ways between the two competitions. They have great speed and many quality players that can be decisive. Nevertheless, we also have skills and quality that we can make the most of. We have many quality players in the centre and one of them is right here in front of us. It will depend on which of the two teams will make the most of the spaces and surely we have to think about what individual initiatives from players can make the difference and which will win the balance of the match. Which team is the favourite is something we’ll see tomorrow”.
Alaixys Romao:
-What image do you have of Sporting: “It’s really an important game and we want to make a good start in this competition. We’ll do everything to get the three points and to achieve a good start in our group”.
-What elements do Olympiacos need to have to win this match: “It’s a fact that this will be a difficult game. Sporting is a good team with good technical skills. However, we know what we have to do, our coach has given us the instructions and we know perfectly well what we have to do in the match”.
-If there is anxiety about the fact that the first match is at home and what’s his message to the supporters: “We’re not afraid of anything. We know that all of them are going to be on our side and we know it’s an important game. It’s good for us that we’re playing the first match in front of our supporters. We’re not afraid of anything. We’re expecting all of them on our side. It’s an important match and we want them to be with us”.
-If he feels comfortable playing more often as a stopper this season: “My natural position is as a defensive midfielder. However, since you’ve seen me playing in that position, it means that I can play also there and I’m ready to do it again”.
-If he came to Olympiacos to experience nights like tomorrow’s, playing at the highest level: “It’s true that from the first season that I came to Olympiacos the reason was that I wanted to play in Europe. Last season we did it in the UEFA Europa League and this year I’ll have the opportunity to play in the UEFA Champions League. In all sincerity, this was also the reason I came to Olympiacos from last season, to play in the European competitions”.
