Jose Luis Mendilibar reacts to Olympiacos Europa League draw. Coach says AC Milan is historic, Rennes is physical and warns of Hoffenheim.
Olympiacos F.C. head coach Jose Luis Mentilibar was asked to comment on the UEFA Europa League draw for Cosmote TV, knowing that the Red and Whites will have to overcome obstacles to advance in the competition.
When asked about his promise of yet another European trophy, he gave his characteristic reply: “We’ll see… We’ll go step by step.”
On how he saw the draw, he said: “Just fine. Whatever it brought us, it brought us. We imagine the predictions have already started. We know everyone will be talking about who we’ll beat, who we’ll lose to and how many points we’ll finish with. Let’s not forget that we have to play.”
On the matches against AC Milan and Olympique de Marseille: “Two historic teams. Milan more than Marseille. Milan is a team that, for most of its history, has played in the Champions League, and Marseille has huge fans, and we’ll be playing there.”
On Sparta Prague and Rennes: “Sparta is a team that always puts in good performances and runs, whether it’s in the league or in Europe. They always do well, and you have to take that into account. Even though everyone says you have to beat them, you’ll have to play well to do it. Rennes is a French team that, like all the others, is physically fit, and you have to run a lot.”
On Jagiellonia and Celje: “New teams for us, new countries. We’ll get to know new teams from new cultures. Teams that are used to being in Europe and that you have to watch out for because they have ambitions.”
On Hoffenheim and Torreense: “Hoffenheim, a German team, it’s not normal for them to be in the fourth seeding pot; they’re certainly strong and run a lot. Torreense deserves a thousand bravos for what they achieved, as they won the Cup while playing in the second division. They will surely fight in all their games in Europe, especially those at home, one of which is against us.”
On the schedule and whether he has a preference: “Yes, we’ll play on Sept. 16-17, and then the long break will follow. In the cold countries, let’s go as early as possible and not in the dead of winter.”
On the promise of yet another trophy after the Conference League: “Let’s see if we can manage to win another one, completely different from the one we won back then. We’ll go step by step,” said Mentilibar.
