Marcelino: Villarreal must focus

Villarreal boss Marcelino has called on his players to remain focused when they take on Apollon Limassol in the Europa League on Thursday.

The fixture at El Madrigal is a potential banana skin for the Yellow Submarine, with Marcelino quick to point out that the Cypriots are capable of taking full advantage of any opportunities that may come their way.

“We expect it will be a game where we dominate things, so we must have a clear idea of when to attack and have to be particularly vigilant defensively in case they surprise us,” he told Villarreal’s official website.

“They are a team that gets a lot of goals from few chances created so we must remain focused. They are very dangerous and that is going to require a lot of attention.

“We are going into this match having conceded four goals in two games, all of them in the first half. Therefore, we need to be more attentive so they don’t score at our ground.”

Marcelino acknowledged that his team is thrilled to be competing in European competition, a reward for all the good work last season, but says he will only be satisfied with a win.

“I’m excited to be in Europe, we all are, and we are looking forward to doing well. We want to win as it’s the first at home in this tournament and it would get us on our way in the group.

“In fact, we need to win because we have been doing great here. Unfortunately we couldn’t beat Real Madrid last week, so a victory would do us good to endorse the way we’ve been playing.”

Finally, he appealed to the fans to come along to El Madrigal and support their team.

“It wasn’t so long ago that the Villarreal fans were watching Champions League games against the likes of Bayern Munich, Napoli and Manchester City, so to them Apollon might sound like a small team.

“But I hope that does not happen and people come and appreciate what Europe is all about. We’d like a full house and a great atmosphere.

“It’s very important for a young side like ours to feel the support from the stands,” he concluded.

Villarreal’s first group game ended in a 1-1 draw at Borussia Monchengladbach, while Apollon disposed of FC Zurich 3-2 at their tiny Tsirion Stadium.

Tags Apollon Limassol Marcelino
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