Olympiacos coach Michel highlighted the drive of his players, especially in the second half, in his presser after the end of the Aris fixture.
The red-and-white side won by 1-0 and the Spanish manager detailed his views after the end of the match in G. Karaiskakis stadium:
A tough match against a tough opponent; how satisfied are you by your players’ effort and the team’s display?
This was the toughest match I have played since I joined Olympiacos. We know that Aris is a team that allows no opponent to perform well because they ooze quality specially in the midfield and higher. We did nothing wrong in the first half, not what we wanted either. We lacked the drive and we were more tepid than we should. During the break, we talked about it, we had to change our display, we yelled a bit as well, but the outcome was what we wanted and everything that occurred on the pitch was thanks to our players.
On Wednesday, Olympiacos is to face Aris for the Cup; will there be a somehow different approach to the match?
Let me rejoice in today’s victory; I can still hardly breath (laughter). The state of fitness of certain players will be assessed because I have some things in my mind; in no case, however, are we to change the entire lineup. I am interested in this competition and, certainly, to have Olympiacos registering wins.
After the end of the match, we saw the squad celebrating together with the fans like one big family. Ultimately, is coach Michel a person who knows football well or an amazing manager?
I was happy in the end of the match; therefore, I went to hug all my players. I am even happier because my players believe in themselves and still fight for the championship title. I do not know if I am a manager, a coach or if I am good at that. What I do know is that I love this sport, it’s my life and I love watching our fans next to us once more -they have always been there but now this is even stronger. We saw that in Volos, we saw it this evening and it makes feel full when I see our fans being happy. I do not know if I am doing something right, but I know I love this sport and it is my life. Perhaps, the color of my hair and my wrinkles fail to show that, but I enjoy football.
In previous ties, we have seen Masouras losing several goal-scoring chances. What was his mental state before the match; could you see me having faith in being capped and making the difference?
Masouras never gets tired, never quits. He is a player who never gets tired. Sometimes, things might not turn out well for him, but he never quits, he goes on and having such a player is a blessing for any coach. He has never been put off by competition in the team, he always strive and asks for the opportunity to help and this is the outcome. Today I replaced Fortounis with Masouras; last time it was Masouras to be substituted by Fortounis, which means we have players ready to help.
