Unai Emery acknowledges the ‘Europa League means a lot to Sevilla’ but opponents Athletic Bilbao ‘want to do something big.’
The sides meet at San Mames in the quarter-final first leg and the Coach of the consecutive tournament winners is eager for the fixture.
“Both teams face the tie with great enthusiasm,” Emery told his pre-match Press conference, AS reports.
“The competition means a lot to us and Athletic see a chance to do something big. Both teams are fighting to win the competition.
“We look forward, only looking back to analyse and improve what we haven’t done well and to grow as a team. I think both teams are very hopeful.
“When you have so many games coming one after the other you have opportunities. This tie is another one. We want to play at 100%, without thinking of anything else.
“We know a lot about our opponent. Both teams are experiencing similar things in the League. It excites me, motivates me, I think it’s a great tie.”
The fixture sees Fernando Llorente return with Sevilla to first club Athletic, but Emery deflected questions about the striker’s homecoming.
“He’s very grateful for his time at Athletic. He’s now at Sevilla and we’re very happy with him,” the Coach continued.
“He has to face this match with maturity. The focus should be the match. I’ll tell the squad the team first and the decision [on if Llorente plays] will be known before the game.”
