Sergio Gonzalez believes Espanyol’s visit of Almeria in La Liga on Sunday will be the perfect reality check for his players.
The Catalans are currently enjoying a momentous run of form, having followed up four wins in their last seven League matches with a Copa del Rey run, which has seen them eliminate Valencia from the last 16 and lead Sevilla 3-1 in the quarter-finals ahead of next week’s return leg.
“[On Sunday] we go back to the League, to real life. It’s what feeds us,” the Coach issued to reporters.
“I’m confident that we’ve changed our mindset. We can make a qualitative leap in La Liga and must not waste it.
“We must compete in every game and know that Almeria will make life very difficult for us.
“They’ve recorded 13 points away from home, demonstrating how comfortable they feel on the road. We must be alert.
“Almeria have good width and a great goalscorer in [Tomer] Hemed. We must defend as well as we can.
“Our football and recent performances have been fantastic, but we want to win [on Sunday].
“The teams below us [in the table] are making things very difficult, and we could be in for a shock if we’re not focused.
“Our objective in the second round [of the season] is to register many more points than we did in the first [round].
"Hopefully we’ll be able to leverage this momentum. The Copa [del Rey] has given us a lot more confidence and opened our eyes.”
