Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde is expecting ‘a more open and difficult’, single-leg Supercopa against Sevilla on Sunday.
The Supercopa has been condensed to a single match in the Moroccan city of Tangier this season, as opposed to the usual, two-legged fare, and Valverde claims it should result in a better spectacle.
“The fact that the Supercopa is a single game makes it a little more open and difficult,” the Coach said at a Press conference.
“Sevilla will be more prepared because they’ve been competing for two weeks, while we’ve come from a tour and some of the lads have joined up later.
“Still, we’re looking forward to winning our first trophy. I’m also optimistic because I’ve seen the players, plus those who joined up later.
“They’re at a good level, focused, know what they need to do and it shows in training. I’ll call up all the players because it’s a Final and that’s what I usually do.
“Only time will tell with Miranda and Cucurella because I took them of both to our preseason tour.
“Now Miranda is with us, but performances will dictate who will be in the squad. As for Riqui Puig, my idea hasn’t changed because of the media noise, not at all.
“He has rhythm and great qualities, but everything needs time. You need to have patience and see how things go in real competition, which isn’t the same as the friendlies.
“Arturo Vidal looks convincing. He’s fine, he came in after months of not playing because of his injury but has arrived in good shape.
“He has to integrate into our style of play but if the Coach plays him, he’ll have to play. I’m counting on Dembele and not thinking about players leaving.
“We hope Andre Gomes does well. I think he will, it’s the idea, and so does he. We hope he succeeds, that he can give everything he has, which is a lot, and can find his game.
“The idea of loaning players out is that they can always come back.”
The Basque also had his say on the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) treating the match as a friendly and therefore placing no restrictions on non-EU players.
“They could’ve warned me sooner…” he concluded.
