Alavés head coach Quique Sánchez Flores was delighted to reach the international break on 11 points after two straight defeats, while Athletic Club head coach Terzić called his side’s first-half display the worst of the season.
“Getting points here is always complicated. You see the stadium from outside and you realise it is very complicated to pick up points. We have great feelings because after a great start, we had lost two games in a row and we were a bit sad. In Bilbao we were very good and we managed to recover the good feelings,” Sánchez Flores said.
He said the plan had worked.
“Whoever told us we would reach the first break with 11 points, maybe we wouldn’t have believed it. We have made a good start to the season and the confidence has returned. In this squad everyone counts and today we made changes compared with the last matches. Things have gone well, there were moments when the opponent pushed us too far back into the low block, but we were able to hold the result with solidity. The plan we had foreseen has worked.”
Sánchez Flores felt the penalty was the most dangerous moment of the game.
“The most dangerous chance was the penalty. The team has been very comfortable, has been forceful and in the duels we have been solid. We have made the game very difficult for players like Nico and Sancet.”
Terzić was far less pleased.
“You have to separate the two parts of this match. The first half was the worst performance of our season, imprecise and without clear chances. We want to be a complete team. There were 24 shots on target, but they were not of the level we do on the training pitch. I’m a bit disappointed with what we showed on the pitch. We expect more from the team and from ourselves.”
The Athletic coach said eight points from a possible 18 left him frustrated, but not defeated.
“That I feel angry and disappointed is possible. Those are feelings that are fine for today, but not for tomorrow. We are going to get up and prepare everything in training in the best possible way in this time we have now without a league game. We must have more presence in the opponent’s box and we are working very hard on all of this.
"There is frustration in all of us and that is good.”