“We want to win the third game against Real”

Athletic Femenino will face the derby against Real tomorrow. The red and white arrived at Anoeta at the best moment of the season after four consecutive victories in the F League and offered a good image in the second leg of the Cup semifinals against the mighty Barça. Victory would leave txuri urdin seven points behind. The lions won the two games they played this season against the Gipuzkoans, the Euskal Herria Kopa final and the first round match against Lezama. Adriana Nanclares knows Real Madrid very well. The goalkeeper arrived this summer in Bilbao from Zubieta. “We want to win the third game of the season with them,” said one of soccer’s most popular players this season. On Sunday he made one of the stops in the League for Anita Marcos in the victory over Valencia.

The Anoeta derby comes at a good time for Athletic.

Yes, we are very happy as a team, we have four consecutive victories in the League and we showed in a good tie against Barça, whose level we already know. We are in a good moment, we want to reassert ourselves to be at the top and get closer to the Champions League positions.

They put themselves eight points behind third place. Do you see it possible to fight for this position that allows you to play in the preview of the Champions League?

It’s complicated because there aren’t many games left, but our goal is to finish as much as possible.

How do you see the game tomorrow?

It’s a derby and derbies are always special. It will be a very intense match, we have four points in the standings and we all want to be as high as possible. It will be an intense battle that will be fought to the end and will be decided by small details.

This season Athletic is above Real, something that has not happened in previous campaigns. The tables have turned.

At Athletic, things are being done very well, we are working to finish as high as possible and to form a block to be able to opt for what Real has chosen in recent years. We are focused on what we are doing, with great hope that the team will be together and next year we will be close to the third position.

The team took a step forward in the second round.

Yes, the first round is all about adaptation, getting to know each other and playing League F. Many of us have not played fifteen games in this competition, the experience is gradually showing and a very good group is being formed. At home, we feel strong, now we want to hit the table outside and win the derby tomorrow.

What are the keys to this improvement?

First of all, the experience that competing in the F League gives you. Knowing how we can hurt the rival, at first it was quite difficult for us. We also struggled to score goals. Defensively, we have been good all season, but today some aspects have come together in this aspect. I think the key is that we look stronger at the top and we can hurt a lot of teams.

Is the drawback that they can’t easily see the door?

There was a time when we didn’t get the ball, the good thing is that we generated chances and now we generated them too. We know that at some point they will come, but we are calmer because now they are coming at us a little more and we have top footballers who are plugged in.

You really know Real. What virtues would you highlight about Natalia Arroyo’s team?

This is a team that likes to have the ball. Their two forwards are very fast, you have to watch out for their counters. They want to look behind us to hurt us. Both teams want to have the ball. It will be a game of seeing who gets the ball.

Nahia Aparicio said in an interview with Mundo Deportivo Gipuzkoa Edition that they have to “eat Athletic.” What do you think?

There might be a thorn in their side from the first round match and the Euskal Herria Kopa, but we want to win the third match against them. It’s a derby, everyone wants to win and we’re going to win.

Will this be a special match for you?

It will be a match of mixed emotions because you are playing with your old teammates, but now my team is Athletic and we have the hope of getting the third victory of the season against Real.

David Aznar uses two systems, one with four defenders and another with five. Which of Athletic’s starting goalkeepers is most comfortable?

It depends on our opponent. With the defense of three we shut down Barça very well. This is the game in which the culé team has the fewest shots on goal. That is important. With three center backs, we are very strong at the back to continue the counterattack, but the 4-4-2 we usually use also gives us a lot of benefits. Depends on the party.

At the beginning of the season, David Aznar decided to alternate in goal with Quiñones, but now he has taken the starting position.

We both work hard every day to get selected this weekend. I’m comfortable in the team, I’m able to help win points and keep a clean sheet, which is important in our games. Yes, I am comfortable, but we work all day and the last choice is the coach.

When you arrived in the summer, did you expect to be the starter in your first season at Athletic?

I came to Athletic with the aim of improving football and my aim is being met. Every player wants to feel good and I achieve it, so I’m very happy.

What are its virtues and defects?

As virtues, I emphasize helping the ball out with my footwork, I’m like a goalkeeper with reflexes and speed in goal. I need to improve in the aerial game and the split ball situation. I need to be more experienced and dare a little more in this aspect.

This Athletic stands out for the good level of its young footballers. You are one of them at the age of 21.

That is our basis. We need to train our young people, for this year we will be given experience so as not to lose points in the classification. We can make the mistake of not having the experience that other teams have.

Did you find what you were looking for in Athletic?

I didn’t expect much. They spoke to me well, but when I came here, I was amazed because we have everything we need to be high-level footballers, which is what we are. Athletic gives us everything to be the best.

What else is missing in women’s football to make the decisive move?

Things are being done very well, but the organizations still have to agree to form collective agreements and for no team to play on an artificial turf… These improvements are needed to it must be professional.

Do you still think the draw for the semi-finals of the Cup will be kinder? If instead of Barça, Atlético or Real had played, maybe they would have been in the finals.

We know that Barça is the only team above all. Yes, we have a bit of a thorn that the culé team didn’t touch.

They played well against Barcelona despite the loss

I think that game was a turning point in the season, we knew it would be very difficult to get the tie back, but the team stepped up and played a great game. It will make us better to face the final stage of the season with the aim of being as close as possible to the Champions League.

NANCLARES FORECASTS A COMPLICATED FIGHT

“They asked me if there were any tickets left for the final in Seville”

The locker room of the women’s team is no exception to the frenzy experienced in Bilbao and throughout Bizkaia due to Valverde’s team’s Cup final. “We all look forward to that date, as athletics we live it as another. The party is theirs, but it represents the whole structure,” said Nanclares. Are they asking for tickets to Seville? “Yes, yes, people are checking to see if there are any tickets left.” Already at the level of the sport, he predicts a complex match: “I think it will be a very close result. This is a final and no one will give anything away. It won’t be easy, if you play against a team with more status you can play them face to face, but Mallorca showed in the semifinals against Real that they are a team that defends very well and will take advantage of their cards. Athletic have to be patient.”