The Chilean-born coach states: “The result doesn’t reflect the game play of both teams during the 90 minutes.  Getafe took advantage of a set piece and managed to score, but their goal opportunities were few and far between,” argues the coach.  He adds: “We had two goals, another close call for Santa Cruz, a controversial disallowed goal, another chance for Baptista as well as Joaquín…at least six or seven clear opportunities to score.  Getafe have some quality players like Pedro León who always work well with the ball, but from a game play perspective, we were the superior team,” concludes Pellegrini.
 
With regards to European football next season, and the possibility of qualifying for the Champions and Europa League still in tact, Pellegrini maintains that the team is solely focusing on next Saturday’s match against Granada CF: “We need to make sure that we stay in Europa League positions, and then try and gain as many points as we can to move further up the League.  Even though some might think qualifying for the Europa League is a step down from the Champions, I believe it’s a great achievement for the team.  It’s not been easy focusing on the both the League and Champions League competitions this season.”

The ‘Malaguista’ coach believes the team can end the season in the top part of the League table, after taking part in three competitions this year: “There are a lot of teams who are in the Champions League, and then end up at the bottom of the League table.  I think we’ve performed brilliantly this year, reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions and staying near the top of the League.  We’ll do all we can to gain as many points as possible in these last five games, but as long as we stay in Europa League positions, depending on the other results, we’ll aim to get as high as we can.”