Despite the fact that the pre-season is underway, it’s still too soon for the new German-born coach to reach any firm conclusions as yet, although he’s full of excitement and motivation: “For the first few days, even though I know some of the players having seen them last season, it’s all about seeing them individually and making decisions regarding each player little by little. We’ve had two training sessions so far, but it’s still too soon to make any decisions. I think everything will become much clearer when we start work in Germany, then we can focus on the upcoming matches. It’s normal when a new coach arrives that the players work extra hard,” affirms Schuster.
With regards to possible signings, Schuster adds: “Some players have left the team so we need to fill these positions with quality players, which can be difficult at times.” Looking at the necessary reinforcements, the coach highlights the position of striker: “The subject of strikers is complicated, due to the economic situation at present, however this is where we’ve made mistakes in the past and we really need someone who gets the goals. It’s important that we tread carefully in order to sign the best possible players we can, and even though we’ve got some good options at the moment, let’s hope luck is on our side. Thanks to Málaga’s performance in the international arena last season, a lot of players are keen to come here, so I think we’ll find a good goal-scorer for the team.”
Regarding the incorporation of Recio and Juanmi, having been on loan, Schuster states: “I think we can rely on these players, they represent the future of the Club, and we need to make full use of the talent all around us. Recio, Juanmi, Darder, Samu, Cristian…we’ll see how they get on, but they need to adapt to the rhythm of First Division football. I’d like to see how they play in matches.”
The coach also gives his opinion on two players in particular, Martín Demichelis and Julio Baptista: “Demichelis hasn’t responded to our offer, so we think he’s not interested in continuing with Málaga. We therefore need to look for a replacement, which is what we’re focusing on now. We honestly thought there was a strong possibility that he’d stay here, and it’d be fantastic if he would, but we have to accept that he probably has other ideas. We’re looking at other players, such as Cata.” With regards to the Brazilian-born striker, the ‘Malaguista’ coach adds: “It’s not easy, but we’re going to have to resolve this situation. Firstly we’ll need to determine Baptista’s plans, he can see what our intentions are, and we’ll take it from there. I knew him during his time with Real Madrid, and he’s a good player who stays away from controversy and wants to do things right. We need a conversation to resolve the situation. Despite his unfortunate injury last season, Julio is a very important player, and that’s what we need to evaluate and think about strongly,” confirms Schuster.
The coach looks at the reserve team players who’ll be travelling to Germany for pre-season training: “I’ve spoken to them, and been recommended certain players from people that work with them every day. It’ll be interesting to see how they get on, see their qualities and how they play. Time will tell what possibilities we’ll have available to us.”
