Real Oviedo Head Coach Javi Calleja spoke to the gathered members of the media a few minutes before the fifth training session of the week.
Ahead of Sunday's fixture at A Malata, the Gaffer stated that "we've got practically everyone back now, we had twenty-four players in training. It might be the first matchday squad where I have to leave somebody out. Paulino is back, Lemos is 50/50. The team has trained well." Regarding the team's work following the Huesca defeat, Javi Calleja highlighted that "it's been a long week. It's always a longer week when you lose, but it gives you time to analyse, to work, and to correct things. You can win or lose, this is a game, but we have been focusing on the reasons why. We put in a bad performance and can't give that image. We made tactical errors, the opponents defended well, and we couldn't create clear danger. We made it easy for the opponent to feel comfortable. In terms of mentality, we find it hard to see that we can come back when we suffer a setback."
Asked how the team has handled the defeat against Huesca, the Coach highlighted that "within the squad we haven't liked what we have done. We didn't play at the level we should. We have said things to our faces, but we know that we are still level on points with the playoff positions and are still the same team that was second a few weeks ago. We have to keep working to have as good a season as possible. We have a squad capable of fighting for everything. We are united and there's no need to be dramatic."
With respect to Sunday's encounter at A Malata, Javi Calleja reasoned that "the main thing is ourselves. We have to put in a different match to the one from the other day and produce a performance that we can be satisfied with. Racing is going through a tough spell, with a lot of absences, and they had a match in midweek. We have to go there, play at a high tempo, and try to bring continuity to our play. We have to make them feel the midweek match. We have tried out different options and are looking for constant improvement. Depending on the players available we can use one formation or another."
Finally, discussing consistency, the Coach commented that "I said it back when we were experiencing a similar run of form: in this division it is very difficult to win every match. You have to be united in difficult times. Our obligation is to isolate ourselves and work, both in the good times and the bad ones. We are still in the fight despite those two bad performances, but we have to keep winning to stay up there. We have to stay patient and keep going in order to be towards the top."