Team Fatigue:
“Yes, the pitch was very heavy in the second half. By the time I was substituted, I was completely exhausted. The field was tough, and the ball kept getting stuck under our feet. The team was tired, and so were they. In the end, we played a good match against a side fighting for survival. A draw is fine.”
Second Villarreal Player with Most Minutes in La Liga:
“I’m at the manager’s disposal. When he puts me in the starting eleven, I play; when he doesn’t, I contribute from the bench. Whatever minutes I get, I’ll happily take them.”
Difficulty Scoring Points Against Teams in the Lower Half:
“It’s normal. All the teams we have left—now Sevilla comes to our home. When teams fighting relegation reach the final minutes with a draw or a loss, they’ll push hard. That happens to most sides. We held on, and it’s clear how tough it is to win in this league. Mid-table teams have very few points, and look where we are—that’s something to appreciate.”
Arnau’s Mistake:
“It’s fine, no problem. I told him after Muriqi’s goal that anyone can make a mistake. I made one earlier that he saved me from—I lost the ball in midfield and he made a stop. I told him it was 0-0 and nothing was lost. That’s how we talk among ourselves: we try to play and enjoy our position. I’ve been in his shoes, fighting to stay in the category, and that means playing with stress. We’ve earned the right to enjoy matches, and if there are errors, so be it.”
Breaking the Club Record:
“Obviously it’s a nice achievement—breaking a club record is always special—but we don’t focus on it. We take it game by game. For now, the goal is to enjoy. If we set the record at the end of the season, we’ll be incredibly proud of that, but our focus is on having fun, winning each match, and if we can finish third, that’s better than fourth.”
Marcelino and His Departure:
“Marce is a professional. He’s proved it. He knew about it for a while but didn’t tell us until now so it wouldn’t affect us—and it hasn’t. When he informed us, his message was that he wanted to carry on as usual, preparing for matches like any other day. He wants to finish third, and so do we. The day of the farewell will be a beautiful moment after these great seasons with him. Then we’ll say goodbye and move on.”
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Revenge in the Champions League:
“We go into next season with the lesson learned and a strong desire for revenge. We know things happened that didn’t go our way. Many of us were new to the competition, and we realized it’s a different beast—another level. We will show a different face, a different version. Not because of player changes, but because we now know it and have that experience.”