First Team 24 Sep 2025

Alessio Lisci: ‘I want to keep seeing the Osasuna that evolves every match’

 The Osasuna coach spoke ahead of tomorrow’s visit from Elche.

Osasuna head coach Alessio Lisci addressed the media ahead of Thursday’s match against Elche (Sept. 25, 7:30 p.m., El Sadar).

“It’s always good to play at home because we feel stronger, we have the fans pushing us, and we really enjoy playing at El Sadar,” Lisci said. “So it’s great to be back.”

The coach added that he wants to “see the best version of Osasuna.” “Is it the Villarreal version? I’d love that, because in Villarreal we played very well, with eleven players or with ten, and I want to keep seeing that Osasuna that adds something new every match, evolves, and becomes more complete on the field,” he said.

On the opponent, Lisci said that “being newly promoted doesn’t mean anything.” “I think they’ve had an important transfer window, signing top-level forwards. They have a very defined style of play, maintaining possession for extended periods. At some point, we all—both the players and the fans—will need patience, because that style requires calmness with the ball and a slow pace. We have to stay calm, because they do it against all teams, and at some point, hopefully as little as possible, they’ll do it to us as well. We need to stay composed, endure when necessary, and strike when we can,” he explained.

He added that “they don’t play waiting for the opponent to make a mistake; they play to force it.” “Against that, we have to make the match uncomfortable for them, be aggressive, and not let them control long possessions—but knowing that at some point they will. When that happens, we have to stay calm, understand it’s normal, and if we need to suffer, we suffer, and we’ll be closer to making a good transition,” Lisci said.

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