Mendiliber: “This is how we experienced the conquest of the Conference – The preparation period is useless in today’s football”

For the experience he lives in Olympicbut also issues of modern football, he spoke in Spain Jose Luis Mendiliber.

In an interview with the radio station “Onde Vas” the coach of Piraeus described the furious celebrations for his victory Conference League and how he is treated in our country.

At the same time, he deified him Ernesto Valverdehe made comparisons between the players of his era and today and explained why he thinks useless now for the teams during the preparation period.

What Medilibar said in detail

For Valverde: “Ernesto is the best coach for Athletic because of who he is as a guy, how he coaches and how he has adapted to the peculiarities of Athletic. I have a good relationship with Ernesto, few will be able to speak badly about him, he is a good person and a good guy.”

For social media: “Everything is good until people use it and everything is used for criticism, that’s the world we live in.”

For the preparation period: “Preseason is useless these days. You play four games with the market still open, and some players come or go at the last minute and with almost no preparation, you have to get them fit with the league going on, and in the first official games you don’t even know what you’re doing.”

For today’s footballers: “They say now players have tablets and not stomachs? It’s not true, before we were very professional, but in a different way. Now they are not more professional because they go to the gym, here the important thing is the field. Everyone will see you, but you have to look more at the group and the team than the individual figure, now it’s all technology and analysts. It’s ok, but for me there is too much data. It is impossible to handle them later with so little time. Look at Mbappe in Luis Enrique’s documentary.”

On how he feels in Greece: “On the street they call me “coach, coach”, but they leave me alone even though they are warmer than us, much more, for better or for worse. If you don’t win, the faces are lower, but if you win, the joy is immense. In Thaldivar or Laredo I used to walk around and wasn’t very well known, but now they recognize you and ask you for photos, autographs, yes, I’ve noticed the difference. In my town I was just another one, while now the children look at me with their mouths open.”

For the celebrations after winning the Conference League: “We played the final in Athens and we were there until 7 in the morning. From the stadium by bus to the streets and the town hall, from there to the stadium at 5 in the morning and that was it. Everything was very hot and in no time, like crazy people on the bus surrounded by engines and flares.”

About his route from Eibar to Seville and then to Athens: “In football, as in life, the surprise is there, on the road. I was quiet after Christmas and in March I got a call from Sevilla, who were close to relegation, but we held on well, which gave us the opportunity to prepare better for the UEL and we had the success and luck to win it.”