Marcelino: “A draw is a fair result”

Athletic Club boss Marcelino García Toral admitted that, on balance, both Athletic and Valencia CF can consider Sunday’s 1-1 draw at San Mamés to be “fair”.

“It was an even match, both teams had opportunities,” Marcelino said at his post-match press conference. “We had chances to kill off the match in the second-half, but we weren’t accurate enough.

“Thats why, just as I think a draw is a fair result, a win for us wouldn’t have been unfair either.”

Marcelino had to make several changes to the starting XI  due to injuries, suspensions and Thursday’s Copa semi-final, but he praised the performances of those players who have seen less game time recently.

He said: “All the squad did fantastic work today, especially considering our recent schedule. It’s just a pity we couldn’t top it off with a win.”