Real Oviedo Head Coach Juan Antonio Anquela appeared in the Press Room this morning, after the team’s training session and ahead of travelling to Mallorca.

The Real Oviedo coach began his remarks by assessing the state of the squad, in which the only player missing is Carlos Martínez. The Coach stated that “we will have leave someone out of the matchday squad. With Saúl we want to take it gradually. We have to take it easy and he will tell us how he is feeling.” With respect to Viti’s role in the last home fixture, Anquela explained that “the only thing we can ask of him is that he has a good attitude and that he wants to play well. We have always believed in Viti. He gives everything for the team and I want people like him. His problem has been the injuries. Normally, we are happy with the people that come off the bench. Now is when it starts to get unfair for me. Whenever I leave someone out (of the matchday squad) it’s unfair, because there is always someone that is affected. It’s a decision that you have to make.”

With Ramon Folch back after serving his suspension, Anquela spoke of Mallorca as an opponent that “does many things well. They get you through
hard work, organisation and playing good football. They have a lot of things: quick players, big players, set plays, they compete...they have all the things that a team in this division needs in order to compete. The only thing I hope for is that we compete, because if we don’t then we won’t even have a chance. They are one of the highest-scoring teams at home, and that’s not gifted to you. We have to do a lot of things well, and make them feel uncomfortable."

When asked about the head-to-head record and goal difference, Anquela commented that “I have enough to deal with with the match, but in the end I will pay more attention to it. It is true, however, that we have to watch it because last year we missed out on the playoffs because of that exact reason. What keeps me going is seeing my team compete, and the other day we did it well, except for the final few minutes when we didn’t know how toread the game. We should have sealed the win sooner and we didn’t do it. Sometimes we win and sometimes we don’t, just like on Sunday."

Regarding possible changes to the formation, the Real Oviedo coach stated that “we have worked on the same things that we have every week. If in the 88th minute Omar scores the one-on-one with the keeper, we would not be talking about these things and the debate would be over. The team should have won the match, but we didn’t do what we needed to do, and so we paid the price. We have to endure these matches well and do things right, so as not to lose. I say that all the time."

Finally, the Real Oviedo coach concluded by assuring that “we only have to worry about competing, since that’s our way of beating anybody. You can’t ask for things that we can’t give. Football is very simple; it's about fighting and doing things well. No one is better than anyone else. If you are off-form or don’t show up, you lose.”