In pursuit of its 9th consecutive victory and to close in on the top of the standings, Olympiacos will play on the road at Leoforos on Saturday night (October 31) against Kifisia Tutu Deals as part of the 9th matchday of the Stoiximan Super League.
The coach of the “Red-and-Whites,” Imanol Alguacil, spoke to Magenta TV about the match against Leto’s team, where he also mentioned his excellent start on the Piraeus side’s bench, answered whether the match against Rennes is on his mind, and also addressed the absences.
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Here’s what Al-Ghuathil said in detail:
On whether he expected such a strong start as Olympiacos’s head coach: “Well, I hadn’t imagined it. Or, at least, I hadn’t calculated it in terms of numbers. But I knew that Olympiacos must always win. When a team is competing for titles in three competitions—and is even the favorite in all three—it’s obvious that it has to win games. The secret is the exceptional work of everyone: the players, the coaching staff, and the people who work at Renti. Because a coach, without all these people, is nothing.”
On the match against Kifissia: “It will be a difficult, demanding game. We’re facing a tough opponent who always gives Olympiacos a hard time, especially when we play at their home stadium. So we know we have to be at our best. Fortunately, we’re able to make plenty of changes to the starting lineup, and that allows us to approach every game—even when we’re playing every three days—with well-rested players. Our goal against Kifisia is to continue the good results we’ve achieved in Europe as well as in the league and the Cup. But we know that, to succeed, we have to give it our all.”
On whether he’s also thinking about the match against Rennes: “No, because sometimes we play with three days’ rest and other times with two. It doesn’t affect us at all. Fortunately, this particular match, even though it’s away, is taking place very close to home. And for the game against Rennes, they’ve moved up the kickoff time, so we’ll be back at a relatively good hour to rest. I always say we shouldn’t look for excuses. We have to adapt, and that’s exactly what we’re doing with all the schedule changes that may come up. What we have to do is treat every match as if it were our last, and give it our all with the players we have available.”
On whether he’s dealing with injuries: “Let’s knock on wood. The truth is that all the players are responding very well. I’m very pleased, because this shows how good a job the medical staff is doing, as well as the players themselves, who take great care of themselves and work systematically to prevent injuries. Right now, we’re very fortunate that everyone is available, and that’s the best news a coach can get. I was forced to leave two players off the roster—Sipioni and Clayton—who are performing very well. But I had to leave them out, precisely because all the players are available.”
*photo source: KYPE
