Betis Vice-President: The Team’s Champions League Goal Is to Go as Far as Possible, Beating Real Madrid Boosted Morale

According to Mundo Deportivo, Real Betis vice-president Jose Miguel Lopez Catalan said the team’s Champions League goal is to go as far as possible, and the victory over Real Madrid also boosted the team’s morale.

Speaking about the Champions League objective, Lopez Catalan said: “In this regard, we are very competitive. The goal is to go as far as possible. Everyone knows that the most effective way is to take it one match at a time. After the draw was made, the first match became very important. Tomorrow’s local-time match against Lille will be crucial, and in the end every point could affect our chances of reaching the next round.”

He added: “If we analyze the draw and the final three matches against teams considered among the strongest — Arsenal, Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich — the first five matches are all very important. As always, the first match is the key, and getting off to a good start is extremely important.”

Lopez Catalan also discussed the team’s victory over Real Madrid and its strong start to the season. Real Betis have won three of their first four matches, and he said: “A good start to the season is very important. We have always known that, but many times for various reasons it cannot be achieved. This year our start has been very good. We have taken nine points out of 12, and the performance has been excellent.”

“Friday’s victory was very important psychologically, for morale and for the joy it brought. It was a deserved win. The team gave everything, and the fans provided their support as always. I can understand Mourinho and Real Madrid fans’ disappointment because they also played a good match, but they lacked efficiency in front of goal, while our goalkeeper made the right decisions.”

“Of course we are very satisfied with Friday’s match, but everyone knows that victory has no meaning now. The most important thing is tomorrow’s local-time match, and we must remain highly focused. We have already seen that every match requires full concentration, as was also the case with Valencia against Levante. This is the direction we must continue: stay focused, take it one match at a time, and tomorrow’s game is especially important.”

The Betis vice-president also commented on the club’s transfer market operations: “The transfer market always comes with various situations, expectations and excitement about new faces, which is normal. This summer our work has been very steady, and our direction has been clear, just as Angel explained at the previous press conference.”

“We believe we completed a very good plan and strengthened the positions where we wanted to improve, including left-back, defensive midfield and striker. Finally, we also successfully signed Ceballos, which was very important for us. We believe we have a very strong squad, so we are satisfied with the overall planning. Now the real answers must come on the pitch, and by the end of the season everything will be clear.”