Valverde: "We have to keep this up"
Valverde: "We have to keep this up"
The boss was pleased after Athletic's win but insisted there is no time to rest on our laurels with fixtures coming thick and fast
Athletic Club head coach Ernesto Valverde urged his players to maintain their good run of form they extended their unbeaten run to five matches with a 0-2 win over Deportivo Alavés at Mendizorrotza.
Los Rojiblancos picked up all three points thanks to strikes from Iñaki Williams and Oihan Sancet either side of half-time. The victory also means Athletic will end the weekend in the Champions League spots, currently sitting fourth with 13 points.
"We're happy. We've come here, where there's a tough atmosphere, played well and got a result," Valverde said post-match. "But now we have to keep this up. Thirteen points out of 18? That tells me we've dropped five on the way."
"It was a derby, we played well. Both teams were strong and little by little we took control of the match."
Athletic grew as the match went on, barely giving Alavés a sniff until the final five minutes when Unai Simón had to pull of some fine saves to keep the clean sheet intact.
Valverde said: "We conceded very little in the first 85 minutes. We always want to keep a clean sheet and give away as few chances as possible. If we maintain our intensity from start to finish we're a tough to beeat. At the moment we're resolute, which is what we're looking for."