Rubén Albés: “I'm convinced we're going to bounce back”

C.D. Leganés head coach Rubén Albés appeared at a press conference on Friday ahead of the team’s match against U.D. Almería on Sunday (4:15 p.m.), as part of Matchday 9 of LALIGA HYPERMOTION 2026/27.

The Galician coach offered the following assessment of the team’s current situation ahead of the match:

Injuries: “Rubén Peña remains out, but we’ll likely have Diawara back. Franquesa and Tejero have been training normally all week.”

Formation: “We know exactly in which scenarios certain players’ strengths will work in our favor, but it’s a relief to have key players returning, which allows us to adapt to whatever scenario we might need for that match.”

Team sentiment: “I hope to see a lot of changes—in the tactical approaches we’ve stopped using, competing better in one-on-one situations… We’ve analyzed what happened; we’re clear on the areas that need correction and the level of play, which wasn’t up to the standard of Leganés or any other Second Division team. We need to get back to what we were doing at the beginning, back to our roots. The players agreed and are aware that we didn’t play well. We’ve put that behind us to focus on the next match and show a completely different side—one we’re used to—that has nothing to do with how we played against Cádiz.”

Almería: “We know they’re a magnificent team in terms of organization and individual talent, but we believe in our strengths—which we’ve already demonstrated—and we want to get them back. 

We always study the opposing players—theirs are top-notch—but we always analyze what they do most often and where we can exploit their weaknesses… That’s a week-to-week process. We’re facing a team with tremendous offensive potential.”

Possible change in formation: “I don’t think the formation had anything to do with the loss. 

I’m not considering any structural changes, especially since we now have our wingbacks back and have players to choose from.“

A wounded team: ”More defiant. After what happened the other day, the feeling is one of defiance and of being something completely different."

Álex Sancris: “I hope he continues to improve in both phases—offense and defense.”

Morata: “He’ll play well in any formation. If we have to question Morata, it’s like the birds are shooting at the shotguns.”

Clean sheet: “We’re going to try to keep one for the entire game. When games open up early, it makes things a lot easier.”

Soko: “I’m sure he wants to score, win the game, and help the team—and Miguel will want to do the same.”

Opportunity: “I hope so. A few weeks ago, we were all grinning from ear to ear and thought we were going to be unstoppable, but today we see things from a different perspective. We have to look past the result, figure out why things happened, and take action. I have confidence in the level of soccer we have across all positions. I’m convinced we’re going to bounce back—of course we will.”

Midweek remarks: “The players don’t train well for my sake, but for their own—because they’re top-notch professionals. They love soccer, they’re professionals, and they love to work hard. It doesn’t depend on me. The team has trained very well.”

Mental aspect: “When you’re affected by the aftermath of a game, you perform worse, but this is about finding solutions and believing in yourself. 

The team wants to bounce back; it has the ability and quality to do so, and we’re going in with confidence that we’ll play a good game, just as we did in Girona. Perhaps much less was expected of us there, but we delivered and played a good game. The team has what it takes to perform well and work effectively as a unit, as we’ve done many times before.”

How to contain Almería’s attack: “We also have good defenders and good players across all positions. We’re aware of their offensive threat—the numbers and other factors speak for themselves—but we have our game plan.”

Changes in midfield: “Perhaps for certain types of games, yes, but mainly in relation to how the players around them are positioned. It depends on how you mix things up with the three central midfielders, but also with the forwards and on the wings.”