Olympiacos is set to play their last fixture in the League Phase of the UEFA Europa League on Thursday (30/01) at 22:00 at “G. Karaiskakis” Stadium against Qarabag.
At the pre-match press conference, coach José Luis Mendilibar and player Costinha spoke about the upcoming match.
Mendilibar’s statements in detail:
Have you tried to eliminate the perception among your players that Qarabag is one of the weakest teams you’ve faced so far?
It’s not mandatory to beat Qarabag, but it’s mandatory to want to beat them, to try, and to do everything possible to achieve that. So, we don’t see Qarabag as the weakest team. There are other teams similar to them. They just haven’t secured high results, but that doesn’t mean they are a bad team in the competition. We need to play well to get the result we want. We cannot assume this is a match we will win either way, nor that Qarabag is a weak team. We will put in the effort to win and then see how other results play out.
Qarabag seems to struggle with set pieces. Have you done some extra work on that weakness of theirs during training?
We haven’t had much time to dedicate all our training sessions to this specific aspect. It’s something we have worked on in general, but keep in mind that Qarabag has also been working on their defensive set pieces. There isn’t just one way to score against a team—this is just one approach. We will try to use all possible ways to score.
With so many consecutive matches, are you considering squad rotation?
Normally, we make changes between closely scheduled games. We will evaluate today’s training session and then make our final decisions. However, so far, things have been going well no matter what we do, so we don’t plan to change much.
Now that the League Phase is coming to an end, what do you think of the new tournament format, where you’ve faced teams with very different football styles?
I like the new format. Previously, in the group stage, it was easier to predict opponents, both home and away, and you knew what to expect and which results you needed. Now, there are many surprises and changes—you don’t always know which results will benefit your team, and every match features a new opponent. It’s more challenging, but I like the competition this way.
Exactly eight months ago today, Olympiacos won the UEFA Europa Conference League. Considering that Sevilla had won similar titles before, was that the biggest career achievement for you, given that Olympiacos was the first Greek team to do so?
Sevilla may have won it before, but for me, it was my first European title. Also, I became the first coach to achieve something like this not just for Olympiacos but for Greece as a whole. So, both achievements are important to me. Without the Sevilla trophy, I might not have reached this point, so that title was significant for my career as well.
Costinha: “No opponent is easy”
This is the third consecutive high-intensity match for Olympiacos. Can the team rise to the occasion and secure the much-needed win?
Yes, of course. We have the strength to continue, no matter how tough the games are. The motivation is there, and that makes it easier. Especially now that we are playing at home, there is great determination and desire to win.
You’ve faced Bruno as an opponent before. Can you tell us a bit about him as a player?
Yes, we’ve played against each other before. It was always a tough matchup for both of us. We know each other well, and it was never easy for either of us to compete against one another. He’s a complete player, and I believe he can help our team.
Theoretically, Qarabag is the weakest team you’ve faced in this phase. What should you be cautious about?
No opponent at this stage is easy. Every match is different and difficult. If you don’t play well, you won’t win. We need to be at our best to get the victory. If they’ve made it this far, it means they are not a bad team.
What is the feeling the team has been left with following the 1-1 draw against Panathinaikos ahead of the Qarabag match and the upcoming cup game against the same opponent?
It’s a mixed feeling. However, we are satisfied because we started well, took the lead, and played with a man down. Despite that, we maintained our intensity and desire, securing the draw. It’s never easy to play a derby with ten men for most of the game, so we feel content with our performance.
