"We had to get our act together and we did"

Ernesto Valverde spoke to the media after Atheltic's 1-0 win over Deportivo Alavés at San Mamés: "It's true that today it was clear from the start that both teams had a lot at stake, we're at the end of the season. We are a persevering team and as a result of pushing we have achieved this victory which means a lot to us. We've been knocked out of the Europa League, but we have to keep fighting in LaLiga."

Regarding the final stretch of the season, the Red and White coach admitted that "we have to go and win all the remaining games, there is no way of getting that out of our heads. Now, there are two games left this week and I give an incredible value to winning because apart from the issue of injuries, there are quite a few players who were involved in the whole game the other day like Yuri, Yeray, Maroan, Jauregizar... and we came from a defeat on Thursday that hurt us and we had to get our act together and we've done just that."

Asked about the injuries, Valverde replied: "It's clear that they don't come at the best time. When you're going to play a final we want to have everyone ready, but we've played a lot of games and that also takes its toll. We're in a decisive moment and we'll see if we can get more players back. Today we got Oihan back and that will give us more guarantees."