Marcelino: “Hopefully we’ll have more nights like this”
Marcelino: “Hopefully we’ll have more nights like this”
Marcelino hails Athletic’s second consecutive win and says they are on the right track
Marcelino García Toral was impressed by his first proper taste of San Mamés at full tilt. What’s more, the Lions rose to the occasion and outbattled Villarreal CF to win 2-1 and bring home all three points.
Raúl García opened the scoring in the 14th minute, finishing from close range after getting on the end of Iñaki Williams‘ whipped cross. Francis Coquelin pulled one back for the visitors just after the half-hour mark, but Iker Muniain sealed the win when he converted from the spot with 15 minutes left.
“It’s a pleasure to play in front of our fans,” Marcelino said in his post-match press conference. “I used to suffer here as a rival and now I’m enjoying it as a member of the home team.
“Hopefully we’ll have more nights like this. I ask for the fans help repeatedly because I think this team is better with them and I’m sure they will win us a lot of points. The people push us, we push them and it creates a great atmosphere whenever we get close to the box.”
The Athletic boss singled out his Lions’ mental approach to the match. Athletic constantly looked to play on the front foot and were never afraid to go toe-to-toe with the Europa League champions.
He said: “We’re a solid team, we have the right attitude and we’re making the fans proud. When you’re able to beat a team like Villarreal in this fashion, while also giving them six or seven chances on goal, it makes you think that we’re on the right track. We’re very happy.”
The Lions had not played for three week prior to Saturday night’s fixture, but they showed no signs of ring rust, playing a high-tempo pressing game from the off.
“We hadn’t competed for 22 days, but I was convinced that we wouldn’t suffer in that sense,” he added. “The most important thing was teamwork, that’s the priority. If the team works as a group, the players are able to perform better.”