So-so. I broke the fifth metatarsal in my foot and have some damaged ligaments. Rather me than another player, let’s put it like that. It’s getting better, but at the moment it’s a bit complicated. I can’t be on the training pitch among the players, pushing them, moving around and pointing out small details. I have to watch from the sidelines and my assistants have to take over. It’s not the best for me, personally, but I think we can still prepare the team in the best possible way. Maybe I’ll do a [Marcelo] Bielsa and sit on the icebox during the quarter-final.
We’re a little bit concerned, but we have to accept it. For any coach, it’s better to have a squad that’s in match shape, in the rhythm of playing several matches in a row, to have the capacity and to really feel safe physically. We’re not that team right now, but it’s not our fault. We just have to adapt to the circumstances and do our best. On the other hand, we did the best preparation, I hope. We cannot think too much about who’s at an advantage or not. We have a lot of players who love these kinds of finals, who are used to playing in these kinds of elimination games, and so we’re relying on that.
For me, it’s a gift. That’s absolutely clear, because we won the two cup finals in France, which was the most important thing leading up to this. Before coming to Portugal, I told my family with a smile, “I absolutely want to make the most of this and to take on this challenge, this week and this game,” because it’s the best possible gift for me. We’re playing in a quarter-final, we’re in the last eight. We’re a very strong team together, we’ve won four titles already this season and I’m very happy to be the manager.
Good question! If I know the answer to that question, I’m not going to reveal it, that’s for sure. The key might be Keylor Navas, with his experience and character. He is extremely calm; he has a lot of experience in this competition. He makes all the other players calm. The other key thing for me is that I can feel that the squad plays together. They’re together not only when they’re attacking, not only to do spectacular things, but the lads also come together to suffer together, to work together, and to stay together when they don’t have the ball. And that’s the key, because there’s a lot of quality in our squad; we have a lot of spectacular forward-minded players but we always have to find a good mix between both.
It’s always difficult to find a good balance. It’s always a challenge with our team, that’s for sure. But we have principles in our game that we want to protect. For me, it’s absolutely necessary to protect our forward, because we want him to be free in his game, when he attacks, with all the creativity and speed that he needs. We want to protect the forward and the spaces while we are attacking. If we don’t do that, we end up being wide open, we can’t defend and, in the end, we leave spaces open between the defence and the attack. That’s the key, really.
It’ll be very important. Atalanta have a totally unique style. They like having all positions attacking; they like attacking with every player who is able to go forward. They always have forwards chasing the ball. Their number 10, [Alejandro] Gómez, is always absolutely free to move around. He always tries to play with one more player in small spaces. They like playing on both sides with their wingers, with lots of crosses and shots from far away. It’s difficult and we’ll have to keep our shape in defence to be able to hopefully not concede any goals.
Really, I hadn’t thought about that. Experience in this competition is very important. Knowing how to deal with pressure and with a first and second leg, that’s a major asset for a club with a lot of experience in this competition. Now, it’s a different competition; it’s a tournament involving only eight teams. So perhaps that makes things different, and it’s the opportunity for a club like us that’s never won the Champions League to rise up to the challenge in a very short time. Only two of the teams have won the competition before: Bayern and Barça. And they’ll be up against each other, which means only one former winner will be in the semi-finals. Does it mean one of those two teams will win? We’ll try to make sure that doesn’t happen – and so will City, Atalanta and all the others.
You can get your copy of the 72-page Official Portugal 2020 Tournament Guide now on our sister site european-nights.com. While you are there, why not pre-order your official 2020 UEFA Champions League final programme? Both the Guide and Programme are available in print or digital.
So-so. I broke the fifth metatarsal in my foot and have some damaged ligaments. Rather me than another player, let’s put it like that. It’s getting better, but at the moment it’s a bit complicated. I can’t be on the training pitch among the players, pushing them, moving around and pointing out small details. I have to watch from the sidelines and my assistants have to take over. It’s not the best for me, personally, but I think we can still prepare the team in the best possible way. Maybe I’ll do a [Marcelo] Bielsa and sit on the icebox during the quarter-final.
We’re a little bit concerned, but we have to accept it. For any coach, it’s better to have a squad that’s in match shape, in the rhythm of playing several matches in a row, to have the capacity and to really feel safe physically. We’re not that team right now, but it’s not our fault. We just have to adapt to the circumstances and do our best. On the other hand, we did the best preparation, I hope. We cannot think too much about who’s at an advantage or not. We have a lot of players who love these kinds of finals, who are used to playing in these kinds of elimination games, and so we’re relying on that.
For me, it’s a gift. That’s absolutely clear, because we won the two cup finals in France, which was the most important thing leading up to this. Before coming to Portugal, I told my family with a smile, “I absolutely want to make the most of this and to take on this challenge, this week and this game,” because it’s the best possible gift for me. We’re playing in a quarter-final, we’re in the last eight. We’re a very strong team together, we’ve won four titles already this season and I’m very happy to be the manager.
Good question! If I know the answer to that question, I’m not going to reveal it, that’s for sure. The key might be Keylor Navas, with his experience and character. He is extremely calm; he has a lot of experience in this competition. He makes all the other players calm. The other key thing for me is that I can feel that the squad plays together. They’re together not only when they’re attacking, not only to do spectacular things, but the lads also come together to suffer together, to work together, and to stay together when they don’t have the ball. And that’s the key, because there’s a lot of quality in our squad; we have a lot of spectacular forward-minded players but we always have to find a good mix between both.
It’s always difficult to find a good balance. It’s always a challenge with our team, that’s for sure. But we have principles in our game that we want to protect. For me, it’s absolutely necessary to protect our forward, because we want him to be free in his game, when he attacks, with all the creativity and speed that he needs. We want to protect the forward and the spaces while we are attacking. If we don’t do that, we end up being wide open, we can’t defend and, in the end, we leave spaces open between the defence and the attack. That’s the key, really.
It’ll be very important. Atalanta have a totally unique style. They like having all positions attacking; they like attacking with every player who is able to go forward. They always have forwards chasing the ball. Their number 10, [Alejandro] Gómez, is always absolutely free to move around. He always tries to play with one more player in small spaces. They like playing on both sides with their wingers, with lots of crosses and shots from far away. It’s difficult and we’ll have to keep our shape in defence to be able to hopefully not concede any goals.
Really, I hadn’t thought about that. Experience in this competition is very important. Knowing how to deal with pressure and with a first and second leg, that’s a major asset for a club with a lot of experience in this competition. Now, it’s a different competition; it’s a tournament involving only eight teams. So perhaps that makes things different, and it’s the opportunity for a club like us that’s never won the Champions League to rise up to the challenge in a very short time. Only two of the teams have won the competition before: Bayern and Barça. And they’ll be up against each other, which means only one former winner will be in the semi-finals. Does it mean one of those two teams will win? We’ll try to make sure that doesn’t happen – and so will City, Atalanta and all the others.
You can get your copy of the 72-page Official Portugal 2020 Tournament Guide now on our sister site european-nights.com. While you are there, why not pre-order your official 2020 UEFA Champions League final programme? Both the Guide and Programme are available in print or digital.
So-so. I broke the fifth metatarsal in my foot and have some damaged ligaments. Rather me than another player, let’s put it like that. It’s getting better, but at the moment it’s a bit complicated. I can’t be on the training pitch among the players, pushing them, moving around and pointing out small details. I have to watch from the sidelines and my assistants have to take over. It’s not the best for me, personally, but I think we can still prepare the team in the best possible way. Maybe I’ll do a [Marcelo] Bielsa and sit on the icebox during the quarter-final.
We’re a little bit concerned, but we have to accept it. For any coach, it’s better to have a squad that’s in match shape, in the rhythm of playing several matches in a row, to have the capacity and to really feel safe physically. We’re not that team right now, but it’s not our fault. We just have to adapt to the circumstances and do our best. On the other hand, we did the best preparation, I hope. We cannot think too much about who’s at an advantage or not. We have a lot of players who love these kinds of finals, who are used to playing in these kinds of elimination games, and so we’re relying on that.
For me, it’s a gift. That’s absolutely clear, because we won the two cup finals in France, which was the most important thing leading up to this. Before coming to Portugal, I told my family with a smile, “I absolutely want to make the most of this and to take on this challenge, this week and this game,” because it’s the best possible gift for me. We’re playing in a quarter-final, we’re in the last eight. We’re a very strong team together, we’ve won four titles already this season and I’m very happy to be the manager.
Good question! If I know the answer to that question, I’m not going to reveal it, that’s for sure. The key might be Keylor Navas, with his experience and character. He is extremely calm; he has a lot of experience in this competition. He makes all the other players calm. The other key thing for me is that I can feel that the squad plays together. They’re together not only when they’re attacking, not only to do spectacular things, but the lads also come together to suffer together, to work together, and to stay together when they don’t have the ball. And that’s the key, because there’s a lot of quality in our squad; we have a lot of spectacular forward-minded players but we always have to find a good mix between both.
It’s always difficult to find a good balance. It’s always a challenge with our team, that’s for sure. But we have principles in our game that we want to protect. For me, it’s absolutely necessary to protect our forward, because we want him to be free in his game, when he attacks, with all the creativity and speed that he needs. We want to protect the forward and the spaces while we are attacking. If we don’t do that, we end up being wide open, we can’t defend and, in the end, we leave spaces open between the defence and the attack. That’s the key, really.
It’ll be very important. Atalanta have a totally unique style. They like having all positions attacking; they like attacking with every player who is able to go forward. They always have forwards chasing the ball. Their number 10, [Alejandro] Gómez, is always absolutely free to move around. He always tries to play with one more player in small spaces. They like playing on both sides with their wingers, with lots of crosses and shots from far away. It’s difficult and we’ll have to keep our shape in defence to be able to hopefully not concede any goals.
Really, I hadn’t thought about that. Experience in this competition is very important. Knowing how to deal with pressure and with a first and second leg, that’s a major asset for a club with a lot of experience in this competition. Now, it’s a different competition; it’s a tournament involving only eight teams. So perhaps that makes things different, and it’s the opportunity for a club like us that’s never won the Champions League to rise up to the challenge in a very short time. Only two of the teams have won the competition before: Bayern and Barça. And they’ll be up against each other, which means only one former winner will be in the semi-finals. Does it mean one of those two teams will win? We’ll try to make sure that doesn’t happen – and so will City, Atalanta and all the others.
You can get your copy of the 72-page Official Portugal 2020 Tournament Guide now on our sister site european-nights.com. While you are there, why not pre-order your official 2020 UEFA Champions League final programme? Both the Guide and Programme are available in print or digital.
So-so. I broke the fifth metatarsal in my foot and have some damaged ligaments. Rather me than another player, let’s put it like that. It’s getting better, but at the moment it’s a bit complicated. I can’t be on the training pitch among the players, pushing them, moving around and pointing out small details. I have to watch from the sidelines and my assistants have to take over. It’s not the best for me, personally, but I think we can still prepare the team in the best possible way. Maybe I’ll do a [Marcelo] Bielsa and sit on the icebox during the quarter-final.
We’re a little bit concerned, but we have to accept it. For any coach, it’s better to have a squad that’s in match shape, in the rhythm of playing several matches in a row, to have the capacity and to really feel safe physically. We’re not that team right now, but it’s not our fault. We just have to adapt to the circumstances and do our best. On the other hand, we did the best preparation, I hope. We cannot think too much about who’s at an advantage or not. We have a lot of players who love these kinds of finals, who are used to playing in these kinds of elimination games, and so we’re relying on that.
For me, it’s a gift. That’s absolutely clear, because we won the two cup finals in France, which was the most important thing leading up to this. Before coming to Portugal, I told my family with a smile, “I absolutely want to make the most of this and to take on this challenge, this week and this game,” because it’s the best possible gift for me. We’re playing in a quarter-final, we’re in the last eight. We’re a very strong team together, we’ve won four titles already this season and I’m very happy to be the manager.
Good question! If I know the answer to that question, I’m not going to reveal it, that’s for sure. The key might be Keylor Navas, with his experience and character. He is extremely calm; he has a lot of experience in this competition. He makes all the other players calm. The other key thing for me is that I can feel that the squad plays together. They’re together not only when they’re attacking, not only to do spectacular things, but the lads also come together to suffer together, to work together, and to stay together when they don’t have the ball. And that’s the key, because there’s a lot of quality in our squad; we have a lot of spectacular forward-minded players but we always have to find a good mix between both.
It’s always difficult to find a good balance. It’s always a challenge with our team, that’s for sure. But we have principles in our game that we want to protect. For me, it’s absolutely necessary to protect our forward, because we want him to be free in his game, when he attacks, with all the creativity and speed that he needs. We want to protect the forward and the spaces while we are attacking. If we don’t do that, we end up being wide open, we can’t defend and, in the end, we leave spaces open between the defence and the attack. That’s the key, really.
It’ll be very important. Atalanta have a totally unique style. They like having all positions attacking; they like attacking with every player who is able to go forward. They always have forwards chasing the ball. Their number 10, [Alejandro] Gómez, is always absolutely free to move around. He always tries to play with one more player in small spaces. They like playing on both sides with their wingers, with lots of crosses and shots from far away. It’s difficult and we’ll have to keep our shape in defence to be able to hopefully not concede any goals.
Really, I hadn’t thought about that. Experience in this competition is very important. Knowing how to deal with pressure and with a first and second leg, that’s a major asset for a club with a lot of experience in this competition. Now, it’s a different competition; it’s a tournament involving only eight teams. So perhaps that makes things different, and it’s the opportunity for a club like us that’s never won the Champions League to rise up to the challenge in a very short time. Only two of the teams have won the competition before: Bayern and Barça. And they’ll be up against each other, which means only one former winner will be in the semi-finals. Does it mean one of those two teams will win? We’ll try to make sure that doesn’t happen – and so will City, Atalanta and all the others.
You can get your copy of the 72-page Official Portugal 2020 Tournament Guide now on our sister site european-nights.com. While you are there, why not pre-order your official 2020 UEFA Champions League final programme? Both the Guide and Programme are available in print or digital.
So-so. I broke the fifth metatarsal in my foot and have some damaged ligaments. Rather me than another player, let’s put it like that. It’s getting better, but at the moment it’s a bit complicated. I can’t be on the training pitch among the players, pushing them, moving around and pointing out small details. I have to watch from the sidelines and my assistants have to take over. It’s not the best for me, personally, but I think we can still prepare the team in the best possible way. Maybe I’ll do a [Marcelo] Bielsa and sit on the icebox during the quarter-final.
We’re a little bit concerned, but we have to accept it. For any coach, it’s better to have a squad that’s in match shape, in the rhythm of playing several matches in a row, to have the capacity and to really feel safe physically. We’re not that team right now, but it’s not our fault. We just have to adapt to the circumstances and do our best. On the other hand, we did the best preparation, I hope. We cannot think too much about who’s at an advantage or not. We have a lot of players who love these kinds of finals, who are used to playing in these kinds of elimination games, and so we’re relying on that.
For me, it’s a gift. That’s absolutely clear, because we won the two cup finals in France, which was the most important thing leading up to this. Before coming to Portugal, I told my family with a smile, “I absolutely want to make the most of this and to take on this challenge, this week and this game,” because it’s the best possible gift for me. We’re playing in a quarter-final, we’re in the last eight. We’re a very strong team together, we’ve won four titles already this season and I’m very happy to be the manager.
Good question! If I know the answer to that question, I’m not going to reveal it, that’s for sure. The key might be Keylor Navas, with his experience and character. He is extremely calm; he has a lot of experience in this competition. He makes all the other players calm. The other key thing for me is that I can feel that the squad plays together. They’re together not only when they’re attacking, not only to do spectacular things, but the lads also come together to suffer together, to work together, and to stay together when they don’t have the ball. And that’s the key, because there’s a lot of quality in our squad; we have a lot of spectacular forward-minded players but we always have to find a good mix between both.
It’s always difficult to find a good balance. It’s always a challenge with our team, that’s for sure. But we have principles in our game that we want to protect. For me, it’s absolutely necessary to protect our forward, because we want him to be free in his game, when he attacks, with all the creativity and speed that he needs. We want to protect the forward and the spaces while we are attacking. If we don’t do that, we end up being wide open, we can’t defend and, in the end, we leave spaces open between the defence and the attack. That’s the key, really.
It’ll be very important. Atalanta have a totally unique style. They like having all positions attacking; they like attacking with every player who is able to go forward. They always have forwards chasing the ball. Their number 10, [Alejandro] Gómez, is always absolutely free to move around. He always tries to play with one more player in small spaces. They like playing on both sides with their wingers, with lots of crosses and shots from far away. It’s difficult and we’ll have to keep our shape in defence to be able to hopefully not concede any goals.
Really, I hadn’t thought about that. Experience in this competition is very important. Knowing how to deal with pressure and with a first and second leg, that’s a major asset for a club with a lot of experience in this competition. Now, it’s a different competition; it’s a tournament involving only eight teams. So perhaps that makes things different, and it’s the opportunity for a club like us that’s never won the Champions League to rise up to the challenge in a very short time. Only two of the teams have won the competition before: Bayern and Barça. And they’ll be up against each other, which means only one former winner will be in the semi-finals. Does it mean one of those two teams will win? We’ll try to make sure that doesn’t happen – and so will City, Atalanta and all the others.
You can get your copy of the 72-page Official Portugal 2020 Tournament Guide now on our sister site european-nights.com. While you are there, why not pre-order your official 2020 UEFA Champions League final programme? Both the Guide and Programme are available in print or digital.
So-so. I broke the fifth metatarsal in my foot and have some damaged ligaments. Rather me than another player, let’s put it like that. It’s getting better, but at the moment it’s a bit complicated. I can’t be on the training pitch among the players, pushing them, moving around and pointing out small details. I have to watch from the sidelines and my assistants have to take over. It’s not the best for me, personally, but I think we can still prepare the team in the best possible way. Maybe I’ll do a [Marcelo] Bielsa and sit on the icebox during the quarter-final.
We’re a little bit concerned, but we have to accept it. For any coach, it’s better to have a squad that’s in match shape, in the rhythm of playing several matches in a row, to have the capacity and to really feel safe physically. We’re not that team right now, but it’s not our fault. We just have to adapt to the circumstances and do our best. On the other hand, we did the best preparation, I hope. We cannot think too much about who’s at an advantage or not. We have a lot of players who love these kinds of finals, who are used to playing in these kinds of elimination games, and so we’re relying on that.
For me, it’s a gift. That’s absolutely clear, because we won the two cup finals in France, which was the most important thing leading up to this. Before coming to Portugal, I told my family with a smile, “I absolutely want to make the most of this and to take on this challenge, this week and this game,” because it’s the best possible gift for me. We’re playing in a quarter-final, we’re in the last eight. We’re a very strong team together, we’ve won four titles already this season and I’m very happy to be the manager.
Good question! If I know the answer to that question, I’m not going to reveal it, that’s for sure. The key might be Keylor Navas, with his experience and character. He is extremely calm; he has a lot of experience in this competition. He makes all the other players calm. The other key thing for me is that I can feel that the squad plays together. They’re together not only when they’re attacking, not only to do spectacular things, but the lads also come together to suffer together, to work together, and to stay together when they don’t have the ball. And that’s the key, because there’s a lot of quality in our squad; we have a lot of spectacular forward-minded players but we always have to find a good mix between both.
It’s always difficult to find a good balance. It’s always a challenge with our team, that’s for sure. But we have principles in our game that we want to protect. For me, it’s absolutely necessary to protect our forward, because we want him to be free in his game, when he attacks, with all the creativity and speed that he needs. We want to protect the forward and the spaces while we are attacking. If we don’t do that, we end up being wide open, we can’t defend and, in the end, we leave spaces open between the defence and the attack. That’s the key, really.
It’ll be very important. Atalanta have a totally unique style. They like having all positions attacking; they like attacking with every player who is able to go forward. They always have forwards chasing the ball. Their number 10, [Alejandro] Gómez, is always absolutely free to move around. He always tries to play with one more player in small spaces. They like playing on both sides with their wingers, with lots of crosses and shots from far away. It’s difficult and we’ll have to keep our shape in defence to be able to hopefully not concede any goals.
Really, I hadn’t thought about that. Experience in this competition is very important. Knowing how to deal with pressure and with a first and second leg, that’s a major asset for a club with a lot of experience in this competition. Now, it’s a different competition; it’s a tournament involving only eight teams. So perhaps that makes things different, and it’s the opportunity for a club like us that’s never won the Champions League to rise up to the challenge in a very short time. Only two of the teams have won the competition before: Bayern and Barça. And they’ll be up against each other, which means only one former winner will be in the semi-finals. Does it mean one of those two teams will win? We’ll try to make sure that doesn’t happen – and so will City, Atalanta and all the others.
You can get your copy of the 72-page Official Portugal 2020 Tournament Guide now on our sister site european-nights.com. While you are there, why not pre-order your official 2020 UEFA Champions League final programme? Both the Guide and Programme are available in print or digital.
