As Roma gear up for the UEFA Europa League final, Sevilla coach José Luis Mendilibar has exalted José Mourinho as one of the greats of the game. The gaffer, who arrived in Andalusia just two months ago amid difficult circumstances for the club, believes it will be a well-balanced clash at the Puskas Arena in Budapest.
Speaking at the press conference (via VoceGiallorossa) ahead of their encounter against Real Madrid, Mendilibar is cautious of the stress of facing the Spanish giants just days before they face the Giallorossi.
“We are talking about six days, with another game in between. We are doing everything possible to arrive in the best conditions. We play against Real Madrid on Saturday and the final will be on Wednesday. It will be a challenge to not overload the players with minutes so that they can be at their best midweek. It will be complicated.”
He then gave his opinion of Mourinho.
“Mourinho is one of the big names of European football, just thinking about what he’s won and where he’s been – coaching the best clubs. I can only speak highly of him. It will be wonderful to go against him. We have differences. We went to visit him when he was coaching Real Madrid and we were able to see him in two training sessions and one match. We talked to his staff. I thank him for allowing us to. Mourinho has shown that he is a great coach, he has implanted his style of play in his teams and he has done it well. He manages to convince and involve his players.”
Finally, Mendilibar spoke about the upcoming final itself.
“I haven’t had time to think about the final. Since yesterday I’ve been thinking about the line-ups for Real Madrid, but I’ve seen a few Roma games. The goal is to arrive fresh after the next game, and then we can focus on that clash, which I say it’s 50% and 50%.”
Roma travel to Fiorentina ahead of the showdown encounter, as they seek to claim a European finish with just two games to play. Whereas, Europa League specialists Sevilla tackle Real Madrid first before marching to their fifth final since 2014, having never ended runners-up in the competition.
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