Francesco Farioli: “Team unity has been a key factor” | OneFootball

The 24th round of the League takes FC Arouca to Estádio do Dragão on Friday at 18:45 (Sport TV), and Francesco Farioli asked his team to be “focused and ready to compete” against an opponent that boasts “impressive numbers,” is organized “in a special way,” and “has done a great job both in open play and set pieces.”

Borja Sainz is a confirmed absence, with the Club giving him “full support” to attend his mother’s funeral; “Thiago Silva will not be in the game” due to injury; and “Martim Fernandes is working hard and taking the right steps so he can be back soon.” On the other hand, “Jakub Kiwior has already trained with the team in recent days, is fully recovered, and ready to play from the start or come off the bench.” In light of these updates to the medical report, the coach lamented “the unfortunate events” that caused some injuries, adding that “the players are always stepping up with a very good mentality and an ability to always be ready to help the team and the Club, as well as to reward the fans with good performances and good results.”

The coach highlighted that this “unity of the group has been a key factor” and expressed the desire to “maintain it until the end of the season,” especially with the challenge of having “three games in ten days” and with his “team of monsters” determined to “keep moving forward, always with the same intensity.”

Condolences to Borja Sainz’s family“First of all, I want to offer my heartfelt condolences to Borja Sainz and his family. The last few days have not been easy for him, he had to travel on Monday because the situation became complicated and, unfortunately, today we received news we did not want to have. I spoke a lot with him in recent days, this is a very particular moment in which we all have to support him, but he is a strong person and will do everything he can to return as quickly as possible because he wants to help the team. It’s good for him to have time to be with the people he loves and to pay his respects to his mother in the way he feels is best. From our side, he has our full support. The president is already there, tomorrow he will also have other club officials at his mother’s funeral. We are here waiting for him to return as soon as possible.”

FC Arouca“Those are impressive numbers. I remember when we played against them in the first half of the season and I highlighted their style of play, which for me is one of the most interesting. In the first half of the season, they got 14 points from 17 games, but in the second half they’ve already earned 12 in six games, which is impressive. The way they play and organize themselves is special and I confirm what I said in the first round: it’s a team that works well, much credit to Vasco Seabra, he’s done a great job in open play and set pieces, we’ve seen several moves worked on in training. It’s a team that puts us on alert and for which we must be focused and ready to compete if we want to get the result we want.”

Playing before the rivals“From my point of view, it’s part of football. We’ve had some opportunities to play before our rivals, of course by playing in the Europa League we end up being the team that closes the competitive weekend in the League, but this time we play on Friday and the focus is to continue our performances and maintain the intensity we showed here at the Dragão against Rio Ave, in a game where we had a very strong approach and mentality. We want to keep moving forward, which is the most important thing for us.”

Focus turned inward“The most important thing for us is our own path, we’re not worried about the rivals’ performance. We’ve put ourselves in a position where we have our destiny in our hands and that’s what we wanted from the start of the season. We’re where we wanted to be, now we have to keep working and maintain our approach and mentality, without spending too much time watching what happens in other stadiums, because that causes potential distractions and doesn’t help.”

Thiago Silva, Martim Fernandes and Jakub Kiwior“Thiago will not be in the game tomorrow, we’re still working for him to return as soon as possible. Martim is working hard and taking the right steps so we can have him back soon, and Kiwior has already trained with the team in recent days, he’s fully recovered and ready to play from the start or come off the bench.”

The injuries affecting the squad“One of these days, even before the Rio Ave game, the injured players went to the pitch as usual and I laughed ironically because there was an excellent defensive quartet with Nehuén Pérez, Thiago Silva, Jakub Kiwior, and Martim Fernandes. Unfortunately, they were all out, fortunately we got Kiwior back for this game and that’s very important, but let’s not forget we still have two serious injuries in attack, those of Samu and Luuk de Jong. This team is doing very well in covering or making these absences felt less. They were unfortunate events because almost all resulted from contact, but I think the team and the players are always stepping up with a very good mentality and an ability to always be ready to help the team and the Club, as well as to reward the fans with good performances and good results.”

Samu“He came back a few days ago, it was good to have him back. We had already done some video calls, but it’s good to have him with us, to see him smile and interact with his teammates. Of course, it’s very sad for me to be on the field with the team and see Luuk de Jong cycling off the pitch, with Samu nearby. When you see two players of this level out, it makes you feel bad, but the good side is that they’re always smiling and trying to prepare to help the team as soon as possible. It’s good to have Samu here with us, because the most important thing is to have this team unity. It’s been a key factor and we want to keep it until the end of the season.”

No calculations“We’re going to have three games in ten days. It’s a schedule we were already expecting, there’s no problem at all. Physically, I think we have a team of monsters because, in the last round, we had the second-best physical performance of the season and I really think the players are incredible, they’re always ready to compete and help. Regarding the management of yellow cards, we’re not in a position to make too many calculations. Alberto got a yellow card he didn’t deserve in the last game, but with Martim’s injury we can’t do the math and every game is worth the same. Our focus is entirely on tomorrow’s game. If Alberto has to get a yellow card for some team need in the game, he will.”

Deniz Gül“Deniz Gül scored in the last game, unfortunately the goal was disallowed by eight centimeters. He scored against Arouca and against Moreirense, two very important and decisive goals. Of course, if we take into account the playing time that Samu and Deniz have and compare the goals scored, the question changes a bit. Deniz is doing well, Terem is also getting back to the desired physical level and we’re very confident with the work Deniz is doing. Of course, we all want to see goals, which is important for a striker, but he’s always close and what matters is being in the right place at the right time. I’m fully convinced the goal will come soon.”

Focused on the present“I’ve been here for seven or eight months, you already know me. I just gave the example of Alberto, I don’t want him to hold back in any type of play. I started this conference by praising Arouca because I honestly believe they are very good. In the second half of the season, we’re fifth and they are just one point behind us, so we have to respect all opponents, even more so this Arouca for the way they play and the quality they show on the pitch. The many goals they’ve scored in recent games deserve all our attention. What comes next is the most important and this marathon is run with small steps. The next opponent has a name and a yellow shirt, that’s what matters most.”

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.