Rubén Albés: “We have to recognize the effort we've made” 

C.D. Leganés head coach Rubén Albés held a press conference following the match between the Pepineros and Girona F.C. at Montilivi, part of the first matchday of LALIGA HYPERMOTION 2026/27, which ended in a 1-1 draw.

The Blue-and-White coach analyzed the match as follows:

Match assessment: “We looked uncomfortable. More than their big chances—they could have tied the game earlier, just as we could have made it 0-2 on a few plays in the second half—we just weren’t comfortable. We would have liked to have had a bit more possession. We have to acknowledge the effort we put in and our ability to defend as a compact unit against a very good team like Girona, which I think was the better side overall. We were able to take the lead, and it was a shame we couldn’t make it 0-2, but with their offensive potential, it’s tough to keep a clean sheet.”

Game plan: “The plan was to be very solid defensively. We started with a 5-2-3 and then switched to a 5-3-2 because we expected a different approach from them, and from there on, we were pretty solid defensively. We wanted to have more possession by bringing players closer to the ball. The wingbacks playing on their weaker foot can give us more possession and more shots on goal, as we saw with Naim’s goal and Tejero’s shot off the post. We have that option and the option of playing on their natural foot, and we’ll continue to use both.”

A fair draw: “It’s a fair draw because there weren’t any controversial plays. They had more chances; they might have deserved to win if you went by the number of opportunities. We were able to create chances to make it 0-2, but holding on in the final minutes against fresh offensive players is very difficult.”

Albés concluded his press conference by saying, “Thank you to the Leganés fans who came out to watch us. Thank you for supporting the team.”