Neestrup: Villarreal an exciting challenge for us
F.C. Copenhagen head coach Jacob Neestrup says facing one of Spain's in-form teams on Wednesday will be difficult, but believes his side can come away from their UEFA Champions League trip to Villarreal with something.
The Lions squad arrived at Castellón airport a little late than expected due to a minor technical fault with the plane, which first had to be resolved in Denmark.
Tuesday's press conference at the Estadio de la Ceramica was therefore delayed, but Neestrup says the squad is fully focused on the task in hand.
"It will be a difficult task tomorrow against La Liga's most in-form team at the moment," said the boss. "But it is also an exciting challenge that we approach with the belief that we can get a good result, even though the disappointment is of course still in us all after Sunday.
"We are facing a very strong team that is rock-solid defensively, with a back line that is very difficult to play against. They give away very few chances, while they can make some quick and direct changes.
"Even though they have only got one point from their first five (Champions League) games, it doesn't change our approach to this one, and I'm sure they will also go out to win the game. Three points will mean an incredible amount to both teams heading into the last two games in the League Phase and the fight to get into the Top 24, and that's why it's a very important game for both teams."
William Clem also spoke at Tuesday's press conference, and Neestrup made no secret of the fact that he is set to play a role on Wednesday night night.
"Clem has a great composure in his game, and with the game picture we expect, it's important that we are calm on the ball and have a good structure to our play when we have the ball. When William plays to his best, he is one of our very best players in those phases of the game," said Neestrup.
"In addition, he has solid international experience by now, and then there's the thing about William, that he always plays well in Spain."
Smiling at that comment, Clem said: "Yes, that's right. I don't really know what's causing it, but I'm also hoping for a good game tomorrow. We're all looking forward to it, because the Champions League is something special, and we're still alive in the tournament, and it'll be even more fun to play the games after Christmas if we get points tomorrow.
"So even though it's going to be difficult, we're going out to play our chance."
