Palma, Feb 24 (EFE).- Javier Aguirre, Mallorca’s Mexican coach, predicted “a beautiful duel” in the match of the twenty-third round of the Santander League that will face his team this Saturday against Diego Martínez’s Espanyol at the RCDE Stadium.
“They come from winning (in Elche), so do we (at Villarreal in Son Moix). Hopefully we will be able to break that losing streak as a visitor and change the course of the statistics”, Aguirre pointed out in reference to the four straight defeats away from Son Moix.
“If we are not competitive, any team can beat us. We have to play football well, show solidarity when we don’t have the ball. We don’t do this when we play abroad and it costs us dearly, ”he explained.
“We have not come back well after the World Cup (in Qatar) away from home and we have only barely found the tone in Seville,” admitted Aguirre.
Mallorca, despite the poor results at home, is eighth in the table with 31 points. On matchday 23 they are closer to the European competitions than to the relegation zone, driven by their excellent results at their Son Moix stadium.
Aguirre, however, does not even want to hear about playing in Europe next season.
“I am not the one to stop the euphoria of you (the media), players or the fans. It is not my role, it is something that as a technician I cannot control. But, with the experience that I have of so many years in Spanish football, I know that 31 points are not enough for anything”, valued the Mallorcan coach.
Regarding the team, he confirmed at the press conference that he had all the players against Espanyol, and announced that “perhaps” he will make some change with respect to the eleven that last day beat Villarreal 4-2 in Palma.
“I have made changes in each game in different positions. I want everyone to feel part of the team in the good and the bad”, explained Aguirre, who expressed his satisfaction with the results of the “internal competition” that he has fostered by lining up almost all the members of the squad.
“Everyone should feel important. I have rotated in all positions, fortunately I have no injuries and that allows me to move the deck ”, she remarked.
The Mexican coach also recalled his time at Espanyol and praised his colleague Diego Martínez: “I respect Diego a lot. With Granada he did a great job in the First Division, he got him into Europe, and with Espanyol he is also doing a great job. He is a worker of those who like his profession, he has a vocation as a coach. Espanyol comes from a very important victory in Elche. They recover troops and surely they will want to endorse that victory at home, in an exquisite field where I spent two seasons”, stressed Javier Aguirre.-
