Diego González remembers Betis: “They made me feel very important”

-How have you seen the team after the holidays? Do you want to make a splash and eliminate Betis?

– Yes, the truth is that I have seen the team very well. Everyone has returned fine from the holidays, apart from enjoying with the families, the previous work that we had talked about has been done to arrive in conditions. People are very excited about the game because it is a very nice experience and opportunity for us, but keeping a fairly cool head in that the main thing is the Mirandés League game, which is what feeds us.

– Usually there are not so many days of rest between Cup matches and League matches. Now there will be a week. What changes?

– Yes, it is true that it is the first game after vacation and we will arrive rested and in top shape. Then having a week of preparation for the next league game allows you to approach it in a different way than having three days in between.

– Antonio Hidalgo has a Sevilla past. Do you think he has a special desire to face this match?

– Antonio, it is true that he has a Sevilla past. He is a coach who is characterized by being very competitive, he has demonstrated it during his career. We will prepare it like a competitive match, with enthusiasm and the objective of winning. Each round of the Cup is opportunities for everyone, for those who play more and for those who play less and obviously for the club.

– Have you been following Betis during the season? You have a Betic past, what do you remember from that stage?

– Yes, I follow him. I spent two seasons there, one in the Juvenil A and another in the reserve team. They were two very important years for me. I found a club that welcomed me with open arms. At the time they made me feel very important, I became captain of the reserve team and they also imbued me with the Beticism that both the club and its people transmit. Since I left yesterday I consider myself quite Betic. Every game I can watch I’m with the television on watching it. They finished the first round better, they have a lot of talent and level. It will be a test for us due to the demands of the rival and the characteristics of the match.

– You came to coincide with Joaquín and some of those who were your teammates made it to the first team, right?

– I always valued the closeness that Joaquín had with the youth players that we were going to train. I have good memories of what I was able to share with him. Rodri, Edgar and Paul made it to the first team although they are no longer there. I do have a good relationship with Antonio Raya, one of the props, we have written to each other and I want to give him a hug and be able to laugh here in Huesca reliving old anecdotes.

– He coincided with Setién as coach of the first team, he had the thorn of not being able to make his debut I guess

– Obviously yes. I think that every youth player or every reserve player’s goal is to be able to reach the first team and obviously I had that little thorn of not being able to do it. These are decisions that have to be made by the first team coach who, first of all, has a first division team at his disposal and then the people from the reserve team have to wait. It didn’t come to me, it didn’t happen that way. I had to look for a life on the other hand, but always very grateful to Real Betis for everything it gave me and very grateful to Betis because without that sporting and personal training I would not have become a professional.

– He plays as a center back and will have to face a questioned forward line like Betis. Does he play for or against them?

– They have a high level forward. I think the success in front of the goal is streaks and we all experience them. We here have also had a streak of eight games without winning in which it has been difficult for us to find a goal, but I think Betis has top-level forwards. Vitor Roque, Bakambu, Chimy… are players who have scored goals all their lives and are sure to continue doing so. Possibly Betis’ poor results could have come from a lack of efficiency but it is not their sole responsibility. Whenever you win or lose it is everyone’s business. I don’t think the forwards should be blamed for being responsible for a situation like this. They are people I have admired and followed for a long time and it will be an honor to be able to face them. It’s a dream.

– Finally, what rival will Betis face in El Alcoraz?

– Betis is going to face a very competitive team, which is very organized both with the ball and without the ball. That he is capable of proposing when they let him have the ball and is capable of defending in a low block and transitioning and that he is very strong in El Alcoraz, which is an important asset for us so that the results are with us and we are in positions of play off. If I’m not mistaken, we have lost only one game at El Alcoraz on matchday 4 of the League and I think that speaks very well of the performance we are giving at home and of the fans, who are a very important asset for us when we play here for the push they give us.