The press room of Real Oviedo hosted the words of Santi Cazorla after an especially painful defeat at a key moment of the season. The blue captain sincerely analyzed the team's situation and called for commitment in the final stretch of the championship.
“It was a tough defeat, yes. It was a very important match for us. It was already difficult, but now even more so,” acknowledged Cazorla, visibly affected by the result. Even so, he made it clear that the team will not give up: “We will keep trying until the end, but it was a hard blow because of how everything happened as well. We tried to turn it around more with heart than with head.”
The midfielder insisted that as long as there are chances, the team must compete at the highest level: “As long as the math says so, we have to keep going. Real Betis is a very tough opponent away from home, but you cannot see a dead team. Regardless of the situation, we want to keep competing.”
Cazorla also engaged in self-criticism when analyzing direct matchups: “When you are fighting for the category against your direct rivals and you don’t get even a point, it’s because you haven’t been up to the task and have been worse than the rest. We have to accept it.” Along those lines, he lamented the lack of effectiveness in key matches, recalling games against RCD Mallorca and Rayo Vallecano at home: “I think we deserved to win them and we didn’t.”
The Oviedo native pointed out that the season has been marked by multiple factors: “It hasn’t been easy, and football hasn’t been fair either. We’ve done enough to be the worst, but there were also moments when we deserved to win and didn’t. Football has penalized us a lot, especially at home.”
On a personal level, Cazorla did not hide the emotional burden of the season: “When you get promoted after 24 years, you expect a season to enjoy… It has been a difficult year for everyone.” Despite this, he reaffirmed his commitment to the club: “I have really enjoyed playing for the club of my life, and I want to keep doing so in the remaining matches,” he concluded.