With the Leagues Cup behind them, Guadalajara is now fully focused on this Friday's match against the Bravos de Juárez, a very complicated test in the resumption of Liga MX. However, Veljko Paunovic assured that his team is in a state of alert and has worked very hard in the last few days to rediscover the footballing version that allowed them to start the Apertura 2023 with 3 wins in a row.
This is what Veljko Paunovic said in a press conference:
"The team is alert and working very hard, we learned a great lesson in Leagues Cup, especially on the physical issue".
"We repeat some processes to rediscover our best version, having done our homework in the League before leaving for Leagues Cup allows us to work better in search of regaining our identity".
"We want to continue to grow in all areas and learn from our mistakes, that is our main goal."
"All the experience we gained in Leagues Cup has helped us in these weeks of work we have had in Guadalajara."
"In soccer you can never be relaxed."
"For good players there will always be room, but it is important that they are physically well".
"We have 3 very competitive goalkeepers, but only 1 can play. For us Miguel is number 1 and we will support him, we will try to have 'Tala' and Whalley in the best conditions in case it is necessary for them to play".
"Whalley will have a chance to play in September when we play in the United States against Leon."
"Our medical department has Vega with a green light, so we are working with him physically, soccer and mentally. It is not easy for him to regain that form that we are looking for in him, that is why we hope that in the next few weeks he will return to his best level because the team needs him."
"I won't talk about JJ Macías at this moment because I don't want to make him nervous or make him feel pressured in his recovery process. We will give him the push he needs to get back to being that player he has proven to be."
"In this country there are millions of people and 18 teams, with squads of 30 players. There are about 500 players, but the most important ones are the ones I have and that's what I focus on."
"Before I sleep I think about what I'm going to tell the players the next day, we are so special in such a big country because we can only play with Mexicans."
"To define 'Guti' in just one position would be to limit him, he is good off the ball, he also has good finishing and associates well. He has good vision with the field in front of him and makes things easier for us."
"I define a midfielder like Gutiérrez as versatile and skillful, I don't want to limit him to just one role on the field. We want to empower him to the maximum, he has yet to reach his best level and to fully get to know his teammates."
"The game against Juárez will be very tough, they are a team that gave a lot of problems to the teams that are up there fighting for the title. They are a very hungry and young team”.
"The Bravos squad was refreshed and with the results they've had, they surely have a lot of confidence".
"I am confident in our team, we have been working very hard for several weeks and on Friday we need the best version of all our players".
