Jagoba Arrasate looked ahead to hosting of FC Barcelona at his pre-match press conference. Find out what the boss had to say below:
On the opponent: I expect the best Barça. It's true that they have one point from the last nine in the league, but that's also normal. What is not normal is their start, in which they won all their games and with solvency. Nor is it unusual to have such a winless streak. They probably have more urgency now and that's why I expect the best Barça. Beyond that, to get a good result, we'll have to be close to perfection. First, we have to get our players back, which we are doing, and after two victories, mental fatigue is practically non-existent. The team is well, with desire and with the illusion of facing a great rival with our fans.
On attacking the way they defend: It's true that they defend in a particular way (forwards and leaving space behind them), but it's difficult to find that pass because they press so well. If you are able to find that pass, you do have space to conquer. It's easier to see it than to execute it. It's true that in the last few games they've conceded a bit more, but I'm sure they're working on that. We'd be wrong to think that they're coming at a bad time or that they're more vulnerable. Quite the opposite: they will be more focused and aware.
On three strikers scoring: That's what a coach wants. More than a problem, I have solutions right now. It's up to me now to make decisions. We have back-to-back games coming up and there will surely be options for everyone, but it's a blessed problem that Abdón and Larin scored goals and that we have Muriqi back.
On rotations: Tomorrow there will be changes because we need freshness, because some of them finished just on Friday and because we have to manage the risk of injury. But we will field a competitive eleven and the best we can field to get a good result. From Tuesday to Friday there is one day less compared to the difference between Friday and Tuesday and there we will probably have to make more changes.
On Barcelona: They won't change the idea, but they will adjust things, yes. They still have great attacking potential. Normally they have 70% of possession and you, with that 30%, have to have clear ideas to find the spaces.
On the team being in form: It's not ideal for us to face this type of team during the week, with less time to recover and because they are more used to it, but when you win, you can have some cramp or discomfort, but not mental fatigue. And when you win at home and in the way we did, what you want is to play at home again and that has to be our plus for tomorrow. We need the best version of the team, the crowd and everyone to experience a magical night.
On injuries: The casualties are Copete, Lato and Cuellar. Asano is training well, but we have to go slowly with him. And players who came in a little bit weaker, like Maffeo and Abdón, are doing better. And the other way around: some of those who played are a bit worse, like Mateu Jaume or Robert Navarro, who ended up with fatigue and physical problems, but they have recovered. Today, when you ask, everyone says they're perfect. We need a cool head to know which is the best eleven, whether or not there is a risk of injury, but knowing that the most important and exciting game is tomorrow.
On Hansi Flick at Barcelona: For me he has brought courage: to go for the games, to score a goal and go for the second, to defend forward.... It's a very vertical team, with variations in attack, that doesn't lose its depth. Beyond going into tactical aspects, I would highlight their courage.
On conceding in recent games: It must have been a bit of everything. Opponents see the games and we try to do damage where we see an option to subdue the opponent. If you add to that that there may be a certain fatigue due to the way they play, which is demanding, and that some players have been missing, which means that the coordination is not the same. Surely in these last few games this has happened. But a week ago they played against Brest and won by playing a good game. I don't think they are bad.
On reaching 24 points: We don't talk a lot about these things, but the dressing room takes it naturally and nonconformist. I don't see that people are absent-minded or euphoric. We know what it takes to win a game.
On Lamine Yamal: It is remarkable that a 17-year-old player has such an impact on his team and on the game. I think he's played 11 games and won them and when he hasn't been there, he hasn't. It's a series of issues for the coaches. These are a series of issues that we coaches see and we have to value the fact that at 17 years of age he has such an impact on a national team like Spain and on a team like Barcelona.
On Larin's confidence: The striker lives on goals and if he scores, he is happy. Larin scores a great goal and he was delighted. We have to give him confidence. We all see that he has potential and room for improvement and we have to work on that by giving him confidence and also by making demands on him. If he scores like he did in Valladolid or against Valencia or gives an assist like the day against Betis, that adds to his confidence and that's what we need.
On the type of striker to attack Barcelona: When you have a clear game plan, you think about whether you need a quick striker who goes into space or a more clever one who plays into space and the spaces are occupied by players in the second line. There are different ways of attacking those spaces. We have three very different strikers and I wouldn't be surprised if all three were involved during the game. In that respect, we have three different solutions.
On building on the win against Valencia: I haven't based myself on any game this season to prepare for tomorrow's game. Normally Barcelona will have around 70 per cent possession and that, without the ball, requires you to be short, together, good for assists. And offensively, you have to have clearer ideas. We haven't played that kind of game yet.
On Antonio Raillo: Raíllo is perfect and ready to play tomorrow. He made a big effort to play against Valencia and in principle he is also available for tomorrow.
On Palma Futsal: It's a mirror. They are a very reliable team. You know they are going to win and no matter what challenges they set themselves. From here I congratulate the whole club. It's a mirror for us.