Marcelino: “Teams which are strong at home finish high up the table”

Athletic Club head coach Marcelino García Toral stressed that the Lions’ chances of finishing high up the table will be dependent on turning San Mamés into a fortress.

The Rojiblancos have always been tough to beat at home, with few sides being able to take points home from San Mamés in recent years. So far in 2021-22, Athletic have only faced FC Barcelona in Bilbao, a match which they drew 1-1.

“Teams which are strong at home tend to finish high up the table,” Marcelino said at his pre-match press conference ahead of RCD Mallorca’s visit to San Mamés on Saturday night (21:00 CEST).

“To make that happen you have to get wins and for that our fans are very important. They have to realise that we are a young team and that we are in a period of transition. There has to be an absolute union between the players and the fans.”

Athletic have only conceded once in their first three fixtures of the season, and Marcelino was full of praise for his players’ defensive efforts so far, saying: “I think we played a good game in Elche, a fantastic game against Barcelona and a great game in Vigo.

“The credit goes to the players themselves. When we don’t have the ball, we have to get it back as quickly as possible and as far away from our goal as we can.

“Last season we were a team that didn’t concede many chances, but we had some problems defending our area which I think we’ve been correcting. Nonetheless, we also have to wait longer to see if we’ve taken a big step forward.”

Mallorca are also unbeaten thus far in LaLiga Santander 2021-22 having picked up seven points from their first three matches with two wins and a draw under their belt.

“We’re playing against an opponent who are unbeaten and have picked up more points than us,” Marcelino added. “In many cases teams that get promoted start well because they are used to winning. Mallorca only lost eight games last season.

“They are a well-managed team, with an experienced coach who gives his teams an identity. They are dynamic and have pace. They are going to make it difficult, but we are on our home turf and in front of our fans.

“I think Mallorca will try to limit their risks and that will lead to us recovering possession in different areas of the pitch and the game will move in a different context. 

“We have to try to get the ball into the box as many times as possible. Tomorrow, with the utmost humility and the utmost respect, we’ll try our best to take home the three points.”

The competition returns after a week’s break due to international fixtures, but the coach insisted it will be no excuse for a poor performance on Saturday night.

He said: “When we start the competition we look at the calendar and see when we have to rest. So we’ve planned for this. On the one hand, it’s been good for us because it’s given some players time to recover from injury and also because we’ve been able to work calmly.”

When asked about if it impacted training and where he believes Athletic have to improve, Marcelino responded: “We tend to work in a comprehensive way and I think we always need to improve in all phases of the game and that’s what we’ve insisted on.

“The receptiveness of the squad is enormous and their attitude is exemplary. We’ve taken a step forward in terms of decision making and concentration. That’s going to make us more competitive. I’m optimistic and I hope the response will be good.”