Montero: “I believed in this project, and I hope we’ll have a lot of success” 

C.D. Leganés introduced Javi Montero as its newest player on Tuesday. The Seville-born center back, who arrives after earning promotion to LALIGA EA SPORTS a few months ago with Málaga, expressed his happiness upon joining the team.

C.D. Leganés’s director of soccer, Andrés Pardo, opened the presentation ceremony for Montero: “This is a special welcome, because he’s made a huge effort and sacrificed other opportunities out of his desire to come here, and that’s very important. He’s put his faith in us, and thanks to the situation with Javi Hernández, this move has become possible. He has a very long career—Atlético de Madrid, Turkey, Portugal, Racing, and Málaga. He still has plenty of fight left in him.”

For his part, Montero wanted to express his gratitude “for the trust. I put my faith in this project, and I hope I haven’t made a mistake in doing so. I hope we’ll have many successes together.”

Montero: “I’ve been welcomed very warmly. The most important thing is unity and that we all pull together”

Morata’s Project and Presence: “At first, I didn’t know anything about Álvaro. I committed to this after talking with Andrés about the project and the ambition to get back to the top. When you hear how ambitious Andrés is, it makes you want to be here and commit to it. And Álvaro’s signing has been a huge joy. Having a friend like him here has made me very happy.”

Pre-season and physical condition: “I’ve been training well. It’s been an unusual summer, but I’ve always been in shape and eager to help my teammates.”

Match against Eldense: “Very good. Last year was pretty tough, and the most important thing was to get the three points. With that, you can keep improving things ahead of the upcoming matches.”

Possible role as a fullback: “It’ll depend on the coach; wherever he puts me, I’ll do my job.”

First days with the coach: “I haven’t been here long, but you can see the intensity he’s setting. That’s what he demands most.”

What it takes to stay at the top: “You need team unity—that’s the most important thing. We have the quality, but the Second Division is very tough, and we have to stay consistent—through the good times and the bad.”

First impressions: “They’ve been very good. I was really looking forward to getting started. We’re aiming to win next weekend. We can’t look too far ahead.”

The locker room: “The group is great, and you can tell. They’ve welcomed me very well, and the most important thing is unity—that we’re all in this together.”

Andrés Pardo: “We’re satisfied with the roster, but the focus is on next week’s match”

Later, Andrés Pardo answered questions from the media:

Last day of the transfer window: “As long as it’s open, things can happen, but in principle, there shouldn’t be any new signings.”

Roberto López and Melero: “We’ve been talking all summer. We have a clear conscience; we told their representatives in early June that there wouldn’t be a spot for them and that we needed to find a solution. If it can be resolved today, we wish them the best. As of today, they’re our players, and they may still be tomorrow. Contracts are meant to be honored, and we’ll try to find the best situation for both of them. They’re very valuable players.”

Andrés Campos: “It’s been a summer of ups and downs. He’s a very talented player, even though he didn’t see much playing time last season. We truly believe he’s a valuable and very good player. If something beneficial comes up for him, we’ll help him; if not, he’s a young player on our roster whom we believe in.”

Transfer Market Assessment: “I’m tired (laughs). We’ve accomplished something we knew would be very difficult at the start of the summer—it’s nothing short of a revolution on every level. Now all that’s left is to wait and see how these situations play out, but we’re satisfied. We have to stay focused on the next match; we’ve gotten off to a good start, but the goal is the next match. But we’re satisfied.”

Possible moves after the transfer window closes in Spain: “As for departures, there are always options. Some transfer windows are still open, and if something isn’t resolved today, it might happen tomorrow, the day after, or it might not happen at all. What we want is for it to be resolved and for all parties to be satisfied. As for new signings, given the composition of our roster, I think it would be difficult to find a player who would be a good fit. We don’t see any situation where we could add that extra something; we believe the team is well-constructed across all positions.”