Quique Setién made his debut as Villarreal manager in a Conference League match. The Cantabrian coach, who occupies the vacant position of Unai Emery (signed by Aston Villa in the middle of the season), could not get past the draw against the Israeli Hapoel Beer Sheva. On the Cadena SER program El Larguero, he talked about his feelings and his time at Barça, that he still owes him compensation money.
The new coach Groguet recalled that he has yet to collect part of the settlement after being fired in August 2020, after the disastrous 2-8 that Bayern endorsed Barça in the Champions League, the same rival that thrashed them last Wednesday minutes after knowing the blaugrana who were dropped from the top continental competition in the group stage for the second consecutive year.
"Surely they will end up getting ahead, sooner rather than later. What happens is that it will take time. In addition, the economic issue also has a lot of influence at the moment... I say this because they have not paid me everything yet," said Setién, for those who reached an agreement with Barça to make the pending payments in installments.
"I already told them that I gave them all the time they needed. It's normal. I look at the institution, which is what I really value. Then the people we passed left better or worse memories. They preferred, as is normal, to sign to a kid from Santander like Pablo Torre who is going to give them a lot of joy and strengthen the team as much as they can", added Setién.
What he did not want to do is enter to assess his relationship with Leo Messi, which is known to have not been fluid. What he did admit is that managing a dressing room like Barça's was not easy for him. "Everyone should stay with Messi, who has been a permanent attraction. I've been waiting 14 years to sit on the sofa and watch him play. I can't assess whether he disappointed me. There are things I like and others I don't and I had to fight with They always appeared a player with whom it costs you a little more or that you have to accept as it is", sentenced Setién.
At Barça he assured that he could not be himself because "at the club there are players who have been winning everything for 15 years" and "they have habits and customs that have been established for many years and that you cannot change".
Regarding the tie, Setién said at a press conference that there are "details of the game" that need to improve but that he is "quite satisfied" with what he has seen in the game. "I have seen that many of the concepts that we had talked about have been developed on the field. There have been some imbalances that we must see and correct. They have wanted to go one hundred percent and sometimes you have to temporize a bit," he told the media after the match.
"Many players have surprised me although I already knew that they are great footballers capable of developing what is asked of them," he added. He also said that he takes his hasty arrival at Villarreal with optimism. "We are not in the best condition because we have injuries and some of those who have played today were not at their best, but above all I am left with the behavior of the players. I liked it a lot," Setién pointed out.
For the new Villarreal coach, "there are always things to improve and correct", and recalled that "perhaps in a less dominant game you generate more and end up winning".
Regarding the proposed tactical drawing, he indicated: "It is one of those that we can use, but not the only one." He pointed out that "the drawing is the most important thing", but that the approach will depend on the different situations that can be found.
"We have been somewhat hasty at certain times, but we have been brave, we have gone forward and we have had them involved in their field, which is the closest way to be on goal," he concluded.
