Baraja: “The draw isn’t enough, but we have to value it”

The match

“We would have liked to win the match, but it was a very difficult game because Getafe CF are a team that put a lot of balls into the box, creating rebounds, and second balls. On that unfortunate action, we conceded the penalty, which deprived us of a hard-fought victory. We know that in this type of scenario, with these opponents that put so much pressure on you, it would have been a really good win. We cannot be happy with the result, but we can be happy with the work, the effort of the team and how the team competed today.”

The penalty and the saves by Mamardashvili

“They had chances. They sent many crosses into the box and we were in a position to win the match. It is true that later, when it was 1-1 after the penalty, on that last push they made there was a stop by Mamardashvili that saved us from losing the match. The emotions of the final minutes could have made it very difficult for us to get the point. But it was also fair to get that point after the work we did.”

The team

“They tried their best. They had attitude, effort and commitment. It is difficult to play football at this ground, because they put a lot of pressure on you. And when you have a good scoreline like we had, then maybe the fear of losing makes you, at times, defend a little further back than you hoped. It was harder for us with the tiredness to push our line up so they wouldn't hurt us. When you can't win, whilst a draw is not enough, you have to value it.”

The second half

“The difference is that if we had won the match, you would have told me that the team had defended well, solidly, and competed until the end. But that action deprived us of a win, and when you are in this situation you have to look at the positive side of things. We would have liked to have won, but that action deprived us of reaching those final minutes with a 0-1 lead. I want to focus on the positives: The team competed with what we had and our possibilities, we showed effort and attitude, and it is a sign that the team want to and can change the situation -and that it will do that.”

His approach

“There are tough matches in which there is not much of a chance of accumulating passes, and this game was about having security at the back, being strong in those types of situations that we have experienced. We tried to compete based on what the game required.”

A better showing

“The feeling is that after the game, the players were not as discouraged as when we lost to UD Las Palmas, which was a very hard blow. The team recovered, and we worked during the week to achieve that mental state for competing and carrying it out in the game. We have to get points. The draw is not enough because what we want is to take the three points, but it is a point away from home and we saw the team give all that they had.

Standings

“I would like it to be different, but we have to stay calm, with the energy that comes with knowing that we are going to have difficulties and that luck can change if you work hard. The squad are aware that we have to change the situation and that is what I take away.”

Results

“We need to be more forceful in the last few minutes. It was an unfortunate action because there was a rebound and it fell to one of Getafe’s players. Then the shot hit Caufriez’s hand. The result was very hard-fought and the team were able to suffer, but it was not enough to win. If we want to improve, we have to compete like we did today.”

Caufriez
“It was a game with a lot of clearances. He has experience from his career and we thought he could offer us things. He was strong when he had to be and it was just that one specific action that punished him too much. He worked well based on what we could ask of him and the game demanded.”

Thierry and Rioja’s injury

“We still don't know the extent of their injuries. We have to make an assessment and then let them recover because there will be injuries and suspensions during the season and the team have to respond to that.”