In his press conference following the Panathinaikos match in Leoforos for MD11 of the Super League, Olympiacos coach pointed out the penalty case in favor of the home team.
In detail, quotes by the Spanish coach:
In your original statements, you have allegedly said that Avila made an unforgettable mistake. Have you watched the replay? Moreover, Mr. Vretzos said it his own proposal that Olympiacos retire from the championship with all those things happening in Greek football. Do you agree on that?
Without having watched the footage, I didn’t say that Avila had made a mistake. I said that, as a coach, with the result because a specific mistake was made in that case; a referee poor call that deprived us of our 3 points. One who has played football cannot take this play as eligible to be a penalty.
Another thing left unclear is that he first called on the foul and then without watching the VART, he calls for the penalty. This is the mistake I made reference about. I deal with sporting issues, but I fully endorse our management’s decisions when it comes to the club’s organizational issues.
I also observe things I fail to comprehend. As a coach I have to stress to all of you that mistakes may happen but I am angry with the fact that mistakes happen and result in us losing the points in match Olympiacos was better and deserved to win, any kind of club one might support. I think there is no doubt Olympiacos was better, by far.
There was big tension in the end. Tell us how you managed to cool down the players in the dressing room in match they are to lose 3 points this way? Moreover, nothing has changes on the table since AEK drew in Tripolis. What are the chances to win the title?
I spoke before the match and said that Olympiacos are quite improved to perform well. It is reasonable that we are angry, disillusioned and annoyed. I think that should the match be more balanced, then that would not have made a great thing. Olympiacos was way better to their opponent and this final scoreline is a bit suspicious. I respect referrers and this why foreign referees are coming. But there is no way I don’t doubt that, despite the Referee comes from Denmark or anywhere else. Indeed, it is reasonable that players are annoyed and furious both individually and as a team. It is a pity for them to be deprived of a well-deserved result due to a wrong call.
Was that Olympiacos finest display so far? Second, after all the things you have said, has that match been distorted? What about the future of this club?
If we play against 11 opponents, then our future shall be bright. As I have said many times, the difference might be 10 points, but tonight it was made obvious that this is not the real one. As you may watch in our last matches, just like we did tonight or against Freiburg, we always say we did our best match tonight. We see the team being ready within 5 weeks and displaying a great personality on the pitch.
Can you turn your players’ fury into energy ahead of the match against AEK?
There is no doubt that we go to Livadeia in the exact same way. Our aim is to win and we shall continue on our path just like we did until the very last moment when we conceded the penalty. This is how we shall continue with our fixtures.
