Funes: “We came here with the desire and excitement to win”
The Málaga CF coach spoke in the press room at the Alfonso Murube following the 1-4 victory. “Once again, I want to thank the fans. We’re starting to normalise that, even away from home, we experience matches as if we were playing at home,” he said.
Match analysis
“You look at the result and it seems easy, but you notice that even when they were 2-0 and 3-0 down, they never stopped fighting or coming at us. Congratulations to Ceuta, because they competed at a very high level.”
“We started the match really well, with our identity. We came here to win, and the team came out fully switched on, with a lot of desire and enthusiasm, pressing high up the pitch. Situations that we knew could happen allowed us to finish the first half 3-0 up, which was a very important advantage.”
“There were difficult moments, especially in the second half. In the first half we had the wind in our favour. One detail that shouldn’t be overlooked is that the pitch was very dry and the ball wasn’t moving at the speed we like. Then, in the second half, with the wind against us, we were able to suffer through it and know how to play a different kind of game that also needed to be controlled.”
Grateful to the fans
“And of course, thanks to the fans, because the turnout here today allowed us to feel at home. It was spectacular. The support from our fans was brilliant, in a wonderful football atmosphere shared between both sets of supporters.”
Focused on #MálagaRacing
“We are thinking about beating Racing de Santander, and that is a message that will remain until the last matchday. What works is better left untouched, and I think we’ve stayed very focused on that throughout the whole year. We need and we want to beat Racing, and we’ll see what difficulties we run into during the week.”
“We’re going to focus on that match, which I think will also be a good one, because the leaders are coming to compete at La Rosaleda. Those are big stakes that we can’t ignore, we have to live them with the energy they deserve.”
“We have to face the difficulty of this game, and then the next one away from home in Zaragoza. So we’re going to stay calm and move on to the next match.”
Top tier rival for #MálagaRacing
“I prefer us to play a great match. If Racing arrive already promoted, we’ll congratulate them. I also have great respect for José Alberto. If not, we’ll have to tell him that it has to be the week after, because we can’t allow it to happen at La Rosaleda.”
Unity in Malaguismo
“I’m very proud of what the players are doing. It’s really beautiful that we’re all pulling in the same direction and that we’re able to bring out the best in ourselves to enjoy all of this. What I’ve liked most about this period is that everyone has been able to step up; not just the players, but also everyone around them.”
“It fills me with pride that they’ve given my surname to the boat, but the ones steering it are our four captains.”
“Even though it bears my name, it represents all of the Málaga supporters. It’s been a space where everyone has come together to move forward with great strength, and I’ll give you a clear example: this match. We’re starting to normalise that, even away from home, we experience matches as if we were playing at home. I’m very proud to be able to live it so closely.”