FCI Levadia head coach Curro Torres made it clear ahead of tonight’s Europa Conference League third qualifying round tie: nothing less than victory is acceptable.
Speaking to soccernet.ee on Wednesday evening, the Spanish coach struck a determined tone as his side prepares to face Luxembourg champions Differdange 03 away from home. “I’m here to win. That would be a good result for me,” he said plainly. “But this tie lasts 180 minutes, and tomorrow we only play the first half. We’re in Luxembourg to play a very good game and to win. That’s the mentality of my team.”
Torres confirmed that every player in the squad is available, including Estonian international Frank Liivak, who missed the previous three matches. Asked about potential changes to the starting lineup, Torres kept his cards close to his chest. “I still need to think about it. The players will find out the starting XI an hour and a half before kickoff. Everyone has to be ready — that’s mandatory in my team.”
Looking beyond the tie, Differdange stand between Levadia and a place in the playoff round, where either Romanian giants FCSB or Kosovo’s FC Drita would await. But Torres has no interest in looking ahead. “I never like to talk about the next match. In my head, I’m only focused on tomorrow.”
The coach dismissed any suggestion that Differdange might be a step down in quality compared to the previous round’s opponents, Iberia 1999 of Georgia. “It’s never easy in Europe,” he said. “They’ve made it as far as we have. They may have different qualities, but they are a strong team.”
“I want to see character from my team. This round is what we’re focused on. If we do that well, everything else will come.”
With in-form forwards Carlos Torres and Robert Kirss both finding the net in recent games, Levadia travel to Luxembourg with confidence.
Source: https://soccernet.ee/artikkel/curro-torres-luksemburgis-olen-siin-et-voita
