‘Although training sessions are being hard, they are strictly necessary’

David Costas spared some time talk to the club's official media after a new day of hard work for the Almeria squad at Juegos Mediterraneos. He stressed that ‘preparations are being hard’, characterised by ‘high training workload’, which he considers important to ‘cope with that month of competition playing games every three days.’ ‘We might complain about it now, but in the end, it is essential to face the championship with guarantees’, he added.

The Vigo-born centre-back reflected that despite ‘returning to a new normality’ due to the fact that teams can carry out group training, the UD Almería players have to face a new inevitable enemy, the heat. On this subject, the Galician, who is one of the team members accustomed to a cooler climate, pointed out: ‘The weather in the south of Spain is always scorching in summer time, so that it will be really hard playing if the temperature is above 30 degrees every three days. The apparent temperature exceeds the actual temperature in Almeria. Nevertheless, he also made it clear that they are adapting accordingly and that ‘we should try to recover enough between games and do our very best.’

Training your mind is equally important as training your physical self. The 25-year-old defender is not only aware of key importance of being physically fit, but also the mental preparation for competition on this atypical final stretch of the season. Once this shortened pre-season is over there will be eleven remaining games. ‘We are professionals and this is our job, so we have no choice but to adapt to any situation. We must become mentally strong and realise that what’s coming is going to be difficult. We have to grit our teeth because the Almeria’s goal is worth fighting for’, he assured.