Most Betis fans have embraced my idea of the game. But it hasn’t been easy.
In the first half of last season, when we lost games, perhaps it was harder for them to understand some of the concepts behind our play. But there were good things to salvage from those defeats, and there is always room for improvement.
By the end of the season, when we finished sixth in La Liga, our approach was more accepted.
The fans have seen the results of playing out with the ball from the back. The way it allows you to control the match. To play in the opponents’ half, even if you have to play back many times before you get there. To find the free man, who can give us superiority going forwards.
In the long run, these are all positives.
Many people still believe that when the goalkeeper has the ball, and you are not winning, he must send it towards the opponents’ goal as soon as possible.
This is not the quickest way.
“In Seville, it is the passion. If you don’t get yourself to that level, you won’t survive”
Everything is about adapting.
Through my life, I’ve always had to do it. I have changed managers, teammates, cities… in football, if you want to survive, you have no other choice than to adapt to whatever comes your way.
This is the way things are.
As a coach, every year you have to make an impression on the new players who arrive. Or you go to a new club, and you need to start from scratch. You sign a contract, and you have to explain what you are about… although you know all that everybody really wants is results.
You also have to adapt at sensitive times, and to certain nuances. Here, in Seville, it is the passion. If you don’t get yourself to that same level, you won’t survive.