Luis Carrión: “We want tomorrow to be the day and to celebrate a victory together”

C.D. Leganés head coach Luis Carrión appeared at a press conference on Friday ahead of the team’s match against Albacete Balompié on Saturday (6:30 p.m.) at Ontime Butarque Stadium, as part of Matchday 13 of LALIGA HYPERMOTION 2026/27.

The Blue-and-White coach offered the following assessment of the team’s current situation ahead of the match:

Death of Jesús de Miguel: “First of all, we join in expressing our condolences and offer our full support to the family and friends of Jesús, who also played for us here. It’s been a sad week. We’ve prepared for the match as we needed to, keeping in mind that we’d be ready if the game went ahead. 

We want to show our support for the family and for Tenerife—there’s not much else we can do.”

Injuries: “Pulido and Kechta are suspended. Atienza and Tejero are back, and we’ll see about Lalo and Ignasi, who aren’t quite ready yet. We’ll see tomorrow.”

Attack: “A blessed problem. I’m really glad the team is creating enough chances to score goals. The forwards are all top-notch. We want to improve on what we didn’t do well in the last game, and we’ll decide what’s best for tomorrow’s match.”

Defense: “When we talk about a defensive issue that wasn’t handled well, it’s the whole unit. Valladolid’s second goal came from a corner kick, but it stemmed from a throw-in we lost. There are many things that can be avoided. Against Mallorca, we were a pretty solid unit; the other day, it felt like whenever they got past us, they ended up near our goal. We’re a team that defends well far from our own goal, and tomorrow we’ll have a match that’s completely different from the one in Valladolid—one in which, right from the start, we want to show that we’re going for the three points.”

A Chance to Break the Negative Streak: “We’re going to fight to win every game. Against Mallorca, we came close; in Valladolid, we did things right offensively but poorly defensively—as a whole team. I’ve been here for two games, and in both we’ve done things that could have led to a win, and tomorrow we’ll try to make things go the way we’ve been working on.”

Álex Sancris: “I think he’s a spectacular player who makes a real difference in the Second Division. We’ll try to bring out the best in him—he’s a brave, competitive guy who’s aggressive with the ball, and we want him to keep doing that for the good of the team.”

Confidence in the team: “The team is very good; it has a great work ethic and is competitive. We have to carry that over into the game. I believe things are bound to go right for this team. We want tomorrow to be the day. I really liked how our fans get behind us, and tomorrow we want to be a solid team—one that attacks, knows how to handle defensive situations, and celebrates a victory together, because we all deserve it.”

Gharbi’s Position: “He’s a great player. Trying to choose what we think is best, we’ve kind of forced him to play in that position. It’s my call. I’ve put him in that position, and we haven’t yet seen his full potential—which, for me, lies closer to the opponent’s goal.”

Balance: “We’ve worked on many high-pressure situations in the opponent’s half—how to defend when we’re outnumbered. The other day, there were areas for improvement—two goals from set pieces—and we’ve worked on all of that. I hope we’ll see an improvement starting tomorrow.”

Importance of the bench: “When I analyze a game, I look at how I performed to put the player in a better context. The analysis has to start with self-criticism. In Valladolid, we started well; we conceded two goals on two isolated plays, but we aren’t as tough as we need to be in certain defensive situations. It’s good that substitutions improve the team, but the first two halves leave room for improvement.”

Goalkeeping: “There’s no starting or backup goalkeeper. I’ve decided on Raúl, but we have four very good goalkeepers. It’s one of the best goalkeeping rotations in the league, well-covered. I’ll try to make my selections by always looking out for what’s best for the team.”

Areas for improvement: “Every game is different. The match against Girona wasn’t the same as the one against Oviedo, or the one against Granada, which was a tighter contest. The game against Mallorca was more evenly matched; we had chances to win. In Valladolid, small details really hurt us. We have to try to improve, and the result should be earning points, starting tomorrow.”

A Must-Win Match: “Every Second Division team dreams of being at the top. I think we have a better team than our current standing suggests, but we have to prove that day by day. We have to give it our all to get the three points tomorrow. I see that determination; we’re doing things right in the matches—we just need to balance a few things—but tomorrow is the day to show that we want to go out from the start to get the three points.”

Center of the defense: “We don’t want to give too much away. We’ve worked on different scenarios. Albacete plays man-to-man in many situations, and tomorrow’s starting lineup will be a strong one. We have enough options in the starting lineup and on the bench to be able to win.”