Igor Oca: “It's not what we were hoping for, but we have to appreciate every point” 

C.D. Leganés coach Igor Oca held a press conference following Thursday’s match between the Pepineros and Real Zaragoza at Ontime Butarque Stadium, a LALIGA HYPERMOTION Matchday 33 fixture that ended in a 1-1 draw.

The Basque coach assessed what happened on the field as follows:

Assessment of the point: "There were twenty-five minutes in the second half where we were clearly superior to our opponents, but we couldn’t finish. The rest of the match was evenly matched. These are games where a lot is at stake; the players carry a heavy burden of responsibility, but that’s just how the competition is. We’re going to have to handle situations better than we did today. In the second half, we talked about not focusing on the referee and those minor situations that were bothering us. We found our rhythm a bit more, but it wasn’t enough to win the match. We changed the formation to play with two strikers, and the number of crosses dropped. It’s not what we wanted, but every point here is crucial.”

Excessive pressure: “It’s a tense match; both teams have a lot at stake, and I could feel that. We’ll have to make that effort to handle the competition better. We need to use the bad vibes from the start as a learning experience. We rushed our play, lost more duels than usual—we accept that and will work on it for Sunday.”

Juan Soriano: “He’s a very important player for us, with a lot of influence in the locker room, and he helps us with his performance. We had to take the initiative in the second half and push our defense higher up, and he did very well in marking and making interventions. Everyone’s defensive work is very important, but he’s essential for us.”

Little rest: “We have enough on our plate just trying to be in top condition. I’d like for everyone to be able to compete on equal terms, and that’s what we all hope for. In our case, we have the same number of rest days as Almería, but there have been teams that haven’t.”