Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Maresca Angry With Derby Draw

It was supposed to be a fiery contest full of goals and action but instead the Seville derby was a rather understated affair, with no goals to speak of in the ninety minutes.

Speaking today after the match Sevilla midfielder Enzo Maresca said himself and his team-mates are frustrated at the 0-0 scoreline.

"Everyone is angry because we have not beaten Betis and have only got one point," he began, " It is normal that this team is criticised because we always want to do more. It shows that we settle for nothing other than the best."

Despite the result and the obvious annoyance though Maresca did find solace in the fact that since he joined the club three years ago they have come on leaps and bounds and even changed the marker for what is a good result at their rivals stadium.

"When I arrived three years ago a draw at their ground was positive and today a tie, playing badly, causes frustration. We are all angry and that means we have improved and are ambitious," he explained.

Similarly the midfielder did recognise that Betis, with a summer of big spending behind them, had also improved.

"It is my fourth season and that is the best Betis side I have seen but still I believe they have gone six derbies without scoring and with the draw they are happy and we are angry."

"That is the difference between Sevilla and Betis which has gone upside down from six years ago," he mused.

The result aside Maresca also defended the 'defensive' pre-match decisions of his manager Manolo Jiménez which included leaving wingers Diego Capel and Jesus Navas on the bench.

"The manager was convinced that with the team we had we could do well," he opined, "Although things didn't go as planned we put out a team to win and to cause trouble to Betis."

So far Sevilla have looked rather inconsistent at the beginning of the new season, with two draws and one victory in the league to their name. Next up for them is a home match against Espanyol and Maresca knows that his side have to start well if they are to avoid getting the fans on their backs.

"On Wednesday if we do not start well in the early minutes then everyone will be on top of us."

"Football is like that though and one must take responsibility, there will be no problems for us with whistles," he concluded bravely.


Resurgent Quakes alive in playoff race
La Liga Preview: Real Betis - Sevilla