Alessio Lisci: “A win tomorrow would be a huge step forward”

Osasuna head coach Alessio Lisci previewed the Girona-Osasuna match in his pregame press conference and underlined the importance of the fixture. “It would be a huge step forward: to get this out of our heads, to add three more points, to break through the 20-point barrier… There are many situations that would benefit us,” he said. “From there, we’re facing a very strong opponent and, as always, it’s going to be very difficult.”

Lisci also emphasized the need to secure the team’s first away win of the season. “It’s something we’ve had in mind since day one because we wanted to improve on last year’s away results, but it hasn’t happened yet. Beyond the schedule, it’s clear it hasn’t happened,” he said. “But it’s the same as always — it’s like a striker who can’t score. If the striker keeps thinking about not scoring, he’ll keep missing. We can’t think about it. It’s in our minds, but we have to go to Girona, play our game and try to put in a good performance. The win has to come — it will come on its own or it won’t — but it comes from continuing our development, not from creating a phobia about away matches.”

Asked about Girona, the Italian coach offered his analysis. “It’s not that Girona were ever bad. The issue was that they were punished for some mistakes playing out from the back, then they went through a spell where set pieces hurt them,” he explained. “They’ve been making adjustments because they have a very good coach, a strong squad and a club that does things well. The situation had to improve because they work well, and now they’re better.”

“Girona are a team that, when they have the ball, are very clear about what they want to do,” Lisci added. “They create chances quite clearly. Those chances aren’t turning into goals right now — I think they have one fewer goal than we do — but they’re a team that creates, plays good football and, when you press them, you have to do it very well because they’re capable of playing through you.”

‘We’re in a good run of form’

The Osasuna coach also spoke about the team’s improvement in recent weeks. “I think we’re in a good run of form, we’re doing well and feeling good,” he said. “But that’s what can deceive you in football. When we’re bad, we’re not as bad as it seems, and now that we’re doing well, there are still many things we need to improve, keep working on and push even harder than when we were struggling.”

Lisci added that player availability has been a key factor. “What’s changed is that we’ve gotten players back. It’s true that we’ve made some tactical adjustments, but we’ve recovered important players and that shows,” he said. “Along with fixing some things that weren’t working, and with a slightly calmer schedule, so to speak, it’s all a combination of factors.”