Rubi: 'We want to achieve automatic promotion so we must win now'

The UD Almería head coach Rubi looked ahead to Real Zaragoza's test, with whom he hopes to change the poor run of results: 'We desperately need to win; we want to fight for the top-two spots, and we must do it immediately because otherwise, the gap will become wider. We still have time, but the team's reaction has to happen now in terms of results.'

 

The Catalan head coach, despite the recent lost games, still sees automatic promotion as a possibility: 'I see UD Almería capable of getting back-to-back victories and starting a positive run; We're like that, capable of the best and the worst, but our intention is to get good results starting with Saturday's fixture, which will bring us closer to the top-two spots. Failing to do so means failing to meet our primary objective, but we must be in the fight; it's another matter if we don't achieve it later.'

 

Something that's weighing heavily on the head coach's mind is his inability to figure out what's happening at the start of matches, as that's when the team have conceded the majority of the goals: 'I kind of blame myself because it's a situation we're not quite able to resolve. The effort required to prepare for the other match against SD Eibar was tremendous, allowing us to withstand the initial onslaughts.' 

 

'Furthermore, we know that with a clean sheet for a while, we're a team that, whether we're doing better or worse, creates a lot; it's a matter of holding on a little longer and if you can, scoring first,' added the gaffer.

 

As for the opposition, the Vilassar de Mar native highlights their offensive potential and is convinced that his team's defensive efforts will be crucial: 'They're struggling to win games at home, but they're getting good results away from home. Their away results are great, like those of a top team. They have top-level attackers, so we'll have to be on alert because they have the mentality to make pressure on their opponents.They're brave adversaries who take the game to their rivals and we have to target them carefully, being very clear about the defensive work we're going to do,' he continued. 

 

Finally, Rubi assures that UD Almería 'are eager to withstand the pressure and try to give it their all, knowing that the benefit is for everyone. We're going to play a game that, at the very least, will make the opponents sweat a lot to win; we're convinced this is the day.'