Pedro Martins:
Is it easy for you to help the team restore its European mindset following such an intensive encounter last Sunday?: “They are two competitions, completely different to each other. The championship involves weekly match days; this tournament (UEFA Europa League) has a small number of matches spread in a few weeks. Their philosophy and reality is completely different. Indeed, we played a match full of intensity, power and stress. It was a tough match. Since the beginning of this season, one of our key objectives and main aspiration is to qualify to the next round. We shall display the same vigor, power, courage and passion we had on Sunday. However, our mind is set on the Betis match. We are ready for a difficult match and, as said since the start of this tournament, the holder of a qualifying ticket will be determined in the very last match day, in the very last minute, so we are ready to fight for it”.
Is tomorrow’s match important in order for the squad to make everybody know that they are ready to move forward in UEFA Europa League?: “Of course. We are here to make this statement because our future will greatly depend on tomorrow’s final scoreline. We know we are short of a few points to qualify and our course will depend on what happens tomorrow. We know this is a really tough group. We said since day one that this group features 3 really strong sides. Qualification won’t be judged tomorrow. We will have to play well until the last moment to claim what we need. We will perform on the pitch the way our philosophy and identity suggest; we will have to be balanced, the way we try to do to date, and preserve our specific characteristics. We will play against a team that has an identity of their own, is always itself and delivers an imposing style of play. We want to do the exact same thing. We all know that in our matches until today, we have given everything, but things could have been different should certain details had taken a turn for the better for us. For instance, if Tsimikas had not been sent off in the first leg, things might have been different for us. We are here to say that we came to claim the best we can”.
To what extent is Olympiacos different compared to the first leg against Betis in G. Karaiskakis?: “I don’t believe Betis is changed a lot. I don’t believe we will see major changes in their style of play. Although they had some poor results at home a few weeks ago, they beat Barcelona big times. It’s a side keen to keep ball possession, to impose its own pace and keep control of the match. We expect to see something of the kind tomorrow. The match won’t be different to the first one, at our home. There will be minutes during which Betis will have control of the match, so did it also happen in Piraeus. They play in their own way, so do we. The match will be similar to the first one with the exception of the last 2o minutes. We will try to do what we always do in all European fixtures, as you have seen until now. We also imposed our own pace against Milan, so will we tomorrow to claim our chances to qualify”.
Miguel Ángel Guerrero:
Are you in position to score again in this very stadium, as you did 3 years ago?: “Indeed, my first time here had been a great experience. I was playing for Sporting de Gijon and scored. Certainly, I dream of doing the same tomorrow. We are a very ambitious side, a team that stands united and aspires to perform really well and make it to the next round. We earned a great result two days ago for the domestic league and this has filled us with confidence. So, we came here to give everything we got and claim all our chances to qualify”.
How do you expect Betis to play?:“We expect to face a strong opponent. They will try to impose their own style, as they always do, and –as said before- we are prepared and full of confidence to give our best and achieve something good tomorrow.”
How “hungry” are you to score goals?: “A striker is always hungry for more goals. However, I was sidelined for 4 weeks, so I am looking forward to giving my best for the team, be it by scoring or else. I want to give it all for a positive result, be it thanks to me or to the entire team. It’s better for the entire squad to perform well than a single player”.
