Real Oviedo Head Coach, Juan Antonio Anquela, appeared in the Press Room this morning following the first team’s training session at El Requexón.

The Coach began by analysing the current state of the team, explaining that, “the team is working. We have had a very poor run of results, but it’s a question of remaining calm enough. It’s not easy to stay calm here, but we are trying to do so.” With respect to his players, Anquela assured that, “both Forlín and Mariga are fine” and said that he will wait until tomorrow’s training session to decide upon the matchday squad.

The team heads to Lugo with Anquela expecting, “a beautiful match, with our fans behind us like always. We will see if we are capable of competing, like we have been doing all year. When we do so as we know how, we are a team capable of competing anywhere.” Regarding the opponent, the Real Oviedo Coach highlighted that, “when they push on, they really do so. They create a lot of chances and get a lot of people forward. They’ve been up there all year. They have a very good, well-worked team, who know what they want and are fighting to finish towards the top.”

Asked about the reverse fixture, Anquela recalled that, “they were better than us in the first half, but we managed to turn the result around and start a good run of form.” Talking about the possibility of a change in formation, the Coach said that, “we have been adapting all season long. We have a lot of ways of playing. Even without making any change in personnel we can change the system. It’s not about whether we play with three centre backs or not, we have a lot of ways to stay balanced, and we need to find that balance because ultimately it is what makes a good team.”

Regarding the huge travelling support, the Real Oviedo Coach described it as “crazy. The biggest satisfaction is seeing our fans. They are going to fill half the ground and be there with us. We have to play for them, always remembering that we can make a lot of people happy with very little. The ‘very little’ is competing. When we’ve done that, the fans have felt very proud of us.”

Asked what he hopes to see from Real Oviedo in Lugo, Anquela was emphatic, saying, “a team with personality. We want to press high and play far from our own goal. Most of all us I want us to be capable of competing. When we say that word people think that it’s just about running, but it’s about playing good football and being organised. We need to beat our opponent to second balls and individual battles, and especially play good football. We need to be a team that knows which division it is in and how to reach its objectives, which is through hard work and suffering,” he concluded.