Sancet: “We’re capable of beating Barça”

Athletic Club forward Oihan Sancet is confident the Lions can give FC Barcelona a good run for their money in Thursday night’s Copa round-of-16 clash in Bilbao (21:30 CET).

Sancet has been in fine form since the turn of the year, scoring his first hat-trick for Athletic in the Matchday 19 fixture against CA Osasuna at the beginning of the month.

“We’re capable of beating them, we’ve shown that on more than one occasion before,” Sancet said at a press conference on Tuesday afternoon.

“The plan is to keep moving through the rounds of the Copa, that’s all that’s on our minds.”

Despite Sunday night’s Supercopa final loss against Real Madrid, the young forward believes the players are in a good state of mind for the upcoming challenge.

“Losing a final isn’t pleasant, but we have to focus on the next match,” he said.

“We’re mentally prepared for what’s to come. We’re feeling good, the team is doing well and playing well will lead to you winning matches.”

Oihan insisted the key to beating Barça on Thursday will be Athletic’s ability to play their own game, saying: “We’ll stick to our game plan. Rather than focusing on our opponents, we’ll concentrate on what we do.

“We have to do everything well, be ourselves and really go for them.”

When asked about the possibility of playing senior international football, Sancet said: “My main goal is Athletic, this is my team, it’s what I’m focusing on.

“Everything that follows that is a bonus, but the main thing is Athletic.”