Alvaro Arbeloa He gave the press conference before receiving Girona. He says that the best thing to prepare for the comeback against Bayern is to play a great game against Girona, but his most important message has been once again about refereeing and VAR in Spain, especially with respect to Barça. He has made it clear that he already said what he thought about this matter in response to the Barça complaints after yesterday’s duel against Atlético, without forgetting that Mbappé’s tackle against Bayern should have led to his expulsion. He has defended Camavinga to confirm that he will start tomorrow, like Bellingham and Militao.
How is Madrid: “Wanting to compete again, wanting to take the three points and play a great game as a team.”
What did he mean when he wanted a Mbappé who is Mbappé every day: “Not only Mbappé, it is important to always want to be yourself, it is clear that every day you do not play a few quarters, that is where the self-demand comes. We want that tomorrow when they play against Girona they feel that they have to shine. That is what we need. That they be themselves every day and are willing to give their best. It is not easy, but we need that. That their motivation is to give their best.”
Whistles to Vini against Bayern, if he sees them as unfair: “You know what I think of him, what he means to me as a coach and the performance he’s been giving since I’ve been on the bench. The whistles are part of the demands of these fans and I see it as normal, other coaches may feel a rarefied atmosphere, but it’s normal. If we had chances against Bayer it’s because of how they pushed the Bernabéu. I wish I could always play at the Bernabéu.”
If Barça is whistled differently in Spain than in Europe: “You already know what I think about that and I’m not going to change. You all know my opinion about what has happened so many years and continues to happen.”
Manage fatigue: “Tomorrow I want to go out and win, I’m not thinking about rotations, about the next game, and I’m going to put out a team that’s up to it.”
Try tomorrow thinking about Bayern: “We are not here for testing, we want the Munich game to arrive and prove what we are capable of. First we have to focus on tomorrow’s game, Wednesday’s game starts tomorrow, we have to play a great game with our people and put out a great team.”
Commitment and desire, if they have been lacking: “No, not at all, it is key in life in all aspects to have a great attitude, a great commitment, the talent of the players is there, they are among the best in the world, but talent is not worth it if we want to be regular. That is only worth it sometimes.”
Barça’s complaints looking at the balance of expulsions in the 21st century, plus 65 for Barça -2 for Madrid: “I don’t want to enter into that type of assessment. We have already seen what happened last weekend and what continues to happen for many weeks. My opinion is there and I maintain it, it is what I continue to see week after week.”
If it is difficult to motivate the players for tomorrow: “No, they are the first to want to play because it was a result that was not what was expected. I have spoken with many of them and they are eager to play and bring a victory to the fans.”
A new setback would be saying goodbye to the League: “We know that each game is key and there is less margin for error. We are going to continue fighting, we know what we represent.”
Mendy, Militao and Bellingham: “Jude and Militao are going to play tomorrow and Ferland may have minutes.”
If you feel that Camavinga has not joined your project: “Camavinga has played a lot with me. More than in the first part of the season. He was a starter and will be a starter tomorrow. I consider him important for me and for the club. He has shown many times what kind of player he is and has the trust of everyone in the club and, of course, the coach.”
Camavinga said he knew he had to improve: “That he has those feelings is good. He has a privileged physique, I am happy with the performance he is giving. Not only is he going to be important now but he is going to continue to be important in the future. Each coach asks different things of him. He has great conditions. I am happy with his performance. I want him to improve, I want him to understand what we ask of him on the field. He will continue to be important in the future.”
If you distrust the referees in Spain: “It’s not about mistrust or not, but about what we are seeing. It is difficult how a tackle on Mbappé like that was not red, these are things that continue to happen even though the VAR was going to solve these things. From Spanish football we are still waiting for an explanation and we must fix it. There are many doubts in all these types of decisions. One week the VAR comes in, another it doesn’t. I try to focus on my work as a coach.”
What Militao contributes: “I already said it the other day, he is surely the best centre-back in the world. He is very dominant in one-on-one, powerful aerial play, with great ball delivery, mentality, character, commanding voice. His importance is clear and it is a privilege to have a player like that.”
