The coach of Olympiacos, Míchel, was satisfied with the team’s appearance and the victory over Levadiakos in “G. Karaiskakis”.
Read below in detail what the Spanish coach of the “red-and-whites” said at the press conference of the match, after the victorious 6–0:
Are such appearances and scores a promise that Olympiacos will defend their title to the very end?
“We are trying to fill the gap and fix what has happened since the beginning of the season. The best way to do that is the way we are on now. We treat all our opponents as if we were already in the playoffs. If we want to have hopes for the title, we must treat all our opponents with respect and seriousness. Therefore, we have to perform at the same intensity in all the games, regardless of the opponent. That’s what we did now. Not all opponents are the same and this was evident in this match; this is why the score was so high.
A good performance, same as with Panathinaikos. Does the fact that you scored six goals today and none a week ago leave you bitter?
Indeed, this is true. We created 10–12 opportunities and scored six goals. Other times you may get more opportunities and not score. What’s important is that the players understand what we want. In some games it may not be as easy to score a goal, as was the case last week, but there are also matches in which goals are as easily scored as today. The players and the team have improved and we can enter the playoffs with expectations. A lot will take place by the end of the championship.
You have a game with AEK in a week. A lot was said in the previous match against the same opponent, but your players proved that you are one family. How do you expect this game to turn out?
I think that we need to radically change our image in the upcoming match against AEK. This is the only way we can show them that we have expectations and hopes for the title; this is the only way to change our image compared to the previous game against them – to change things starting with myself. I don’t want to expend my energy on criticism or positive comments. I want to inspire my players to play as well as they did today.
Your line-up had absences –Papastathopoulos, James, M’Vila–, nevertheless we saw a spectacular team that created many opportunities. What do you expect next with these players in your line-up? And are you concerned that, while your team creates opportunities in the derbies, they do not score the goals they should?
Absences are something that happens in soccer, so there must be other solutions, as well as competition within the team. In the previous game against Asteras Tripolis, when we scored six goals, these footballers were in the line-up. This time we scored six goals without them, so we played without our absences being evident. I am certain that not all teams can have all their players throughout the year, but I think that right now our team has 18 players who can respond at any time. Many can help us more than at the beginning of the season, because their mind-set has changed and that’s why the team is in better shape. Not only are we scoring goals now, but we’re not conceding any, and that’s the good news. I insist that the balance in our team is constantly improving and we do not concede goals, such as in the games against PAOK and Panathinaikos. Beyond that, there is no luck for goals, you have to seek it. If I am not mistaken, after taking a look at the results, AEK and PAOK have the best results between them, but we now beat teams that we were unable to at the beginning of the championship. We should have won both games against Panathinaikos; there was balance with AEK in the championship, while with PAOK we never felt inferior, despite the fact that we lost at home. But if you asked me when I got here, what state I want to see our team in before the playoffs, my answer would be as they are now. The image of Olympiacos, at the moment, has to do with the fact that I always thought that the team should have the present image, and this is not attributable to the coach but to the players.
What is the condition of James and M’Vila in view of the match with AEK?
James has been training alone for three days and tomorrow he will join the team, so he will definitely be part of our mission. M’Vila did not play, but we still have days ahead of us. He wants to play and has strong characteristics; he is strong himself and he has a strong will towards the team. Naturally, my problem now is who gets replaced with James.
