Two summers ago, David Cobeño (Madrid, 1982) was scouted by Sevilla to replace Monchi, who was leaving for the Premier League after winning the seventh Europa League in Budapest. The former Sevilla goalkeeper rejected the offer because he wanted to be a participant in Rayo Vallecano’s centenary and had no doubts about his place. The Madrid native owes himself to Vallecas and has accumulated seven years of professional career in his sports management. Although his stay in the capital of Seville was brief, in the shadow of Andrés Palop, his affection for Seville remains intact thanks to the affection he received at that time. Now, the Sevilla club looks face to face with Rayo. The delicate financial situation and irregular sporting performance has caused both teams to fight for a similar objective. Even so, Cobeño is optimistic about the new Seville project, although he warns that the most important thing is to have one’s feet on the ground. —First of all, how is your seventh year as Rayo sports director going?—As always, more or less. I continue with the same enthusiasm and with the same objective. Thank God the team is working and we are happy with the start of the season we are having.—It has been a complicated summer of signings for Rayo due to LaLiga restrictions.—We are used to dealing with the restrictions because, being a team smaller, we have less budget and we have to go to free or loaned players. For us it has been difficult as for everyone, we try to look for economic things with the possibilities we have as a club.—Sevilla this year is also suffering the consequences of financial fair play. How do you value the market it has made?—I am nobody to do an assessment of the Sevilla market. I’m not involved on a day-to-day basis and I don’t know the circumstances of the club. What I do know is that its sports director, Víctor Orta, is going to try to do his best. I know him personally and he seems like a person very capable of finding talent in situations that are very complicated. Time will tell if it’s right or not. Sports directors need time to see if we are right or wrong with the signings, it is not about signing and immediate performance. There are some players who do… who perform immediately, but others require adaptation. And many of the players that Sevilla has signed require that adaptation to be able to perform at one hundred percent. “I didn’t know what Sevilla’s financial situation was like. “You hear and see things, but not everything that’s inside”—Was Sevilla expected to be in this situation after two decades of success? What goal do you think this season should have?—In the end, the situations and cycles that happen are what they are. In these years, Sevilla has won many titles and now it is in a situation that it was not expected to be in, but we have to face them as they come. What you don’t have to do is put a blindfold on your eyes and get your hopes up. You have to keep your feet on the ground knowing where you can go and where you can’t. On the contrary, these false illusions can make you fall into the error of rushing when making decisions, or lowering your head and having problems.—When Monchi left for the United Kingdom two summers ago, the club knocked on his door .—That has already happened, at the time I already spoke what happened. For me, Sevilla will always be a very special club, if I can help in whatever way I will always try. Right now, each one has their personal situations and each one must focus on their own thing and not think about the past. —Did you know what Sevilla’s financial situation was like then?—No. From the outside you listen and see, but then you have to be inside to know exactly what the real situation of each club is and I only handle the data of Rayo, which is where I work. As for the rest, I know what I hear from outside and what I see. —Are you happy with the current Rayo? How has the adaptation process of the new coaching staff been?—Despite the defeat against Las Palmas, which we thought would not happen, we are in a good situation, with good feelings. In the end, that greatly determines the future of the season and the truth is that we are very happy with the performance of the squad and the coaching staff. —Are you following Sevilla this campaign? How do you see the team they have put together for Xavi García Pimienta?—I follow Sevilla like I follow all teams, perhaps a little more because of what it means to me and because of the affection I have received there. What happened to us last year is happening to Sevilla, the change of coach, change of game philosophy and that always takes time. Changes, in all aspects of life, require time and trust. Sevilla is in that period of adaptation and confidence and I am sure that they will get good results, because they have a good squad and very good people who support them every game at the Sánchez-Pizjuán.—Does García Pimienta seem like a good coach for Sevilla? Taking into account your circumstances?—Yes, man. Last year he did very well with Las Palmas. It is true that at the end of the season they also suffered, like we suffer here in Vallecas, but it was normal due to the team’s budget. This is also why I said before, false expectations make teams that have a very clear objective make mistakes. But he is a coach who has a very good career and experience. Their teams play very good football. He is a great coach.—This year is marked by the farewell of Jesús Navas. What do you remember from your time sharing the dressing room with him?—I was a teammate of Jesús when I was in Seville and, although I was very young, I already had the feeling of being a Sevillista that has. He is a Sevillismo legend and I think that the entire career he has achieved in Sevilla and in the Spanish team will be remembered forever. He has marked an era at Sevilla and is one of the club’s most important figures.—With the physical problems he has in his hip, which has even affected his personal life… Shouldn’t he have retired before he cost his health?—He has stayed to help the club. It is a situation in which Sevilla is not as everyone thought. That feeling that Navas has of Sevillismo in his veins has made him continue, despite the physical problems he has and that he himself has recognized. Some problems that make him have a hard time on a personal level on a daily basis, with his family… I think that the extra effort he is making is to help in these bad times. He doesn’t want to leave the club stranded and knowing that, perhaps, it could affect his personal life in the future. Feeling is more powerful than suffering. That is appreciated, that a person puts his body at the service of the club, it tells you what kind of person he is.
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