Back
Martínez: "It was a frustrating game"
The coach gives his verdict on the 2-2 draw with Valencia CF
After RCD Espanyol conceded a late equaliser in a 2-2 draw at home to Valencia CF, coach Diego Martínez expressed his frustration with having been denied a first win at the RCDE Stadium this season. The coach spoke in his post-match press conference to analyse the Matchday 7 performance.
"We took a point in an evenly-matched game. We started well in the first half, matching their opportunities, and then the best chances of the second half were for us," he stated.
"It is very frustrating not to take the three points due to a move in the 95th minute that was not even a shot. You have to persevere and do better next time. The only way forward is to keep improving and developing. It's a very frustrating day for all Pericos, but I'm the first to take responsibility for a defeat and the last to take credit for a win. A draw doesn't feel like a good result, but we have to keep going".
The coach also explained the feeling of not having been able to win at home in 2022/23, saying that "when a team need to win, it is always harder. The team did something very difficult, which is coming back from a deficit. They did it with a lot of conviction and had a very complete game. We are in a moment in which it seems that everything is a little more difficult to achieve. The team have deserved more in many games, but the points have not come; you have to accept it and deal with it. We now have to go to Cádiz with the mentality of looking to win, knowing that you can't gift anybody anything in the Primera División."
Asked about the late mistake from Álvaro Fernández, Martínez refused to single out the goalkeeper, insisting that "if one of us fails, we all fail. It's a team issue."
"The team improved in many phases of the game, but there is something we have to stop doing, which is giving things to the opposition. However, players don't want to make mistakes, and they have shown incredible commitment. There have been few games in my career that have ended with me feeling such frustration."