Machín: “Points and records are just numbers; we have all helped to build the current Girona”

-If Girona wins in Pamplona, ​​they will exceed their 52 points and become the best in history. Do you sign it?

Of course. It will be a sign that the club is growing and has options to be in Europe, something that, not in my time but last year itself, only four delusional people could imagine. There is a very solid foundation. Points and records are just numbers and are there to be beaten. Beyond that I believe more in the memories and sensations that have been experienced and they are all special and have a different environment and idiosyncrasy.

-Does it bother him or does it matter to him that Míchel immediately focused on breaking his points record as a goal?

Why should it bother me? I didn’t even remember how many I had made… It seems good to me. Everyone looks for motivation where they see fit. The important thing for a club like Girona is always to stay and from here, that the fans enjoy and that the environment grows. If that’s why it’s necessary to beat some numbers, go ahead.

-What do you think of the debate about who is the best coach in the history of the club?

There are data that are irrefutable. It is necessary to contextualize everything and not base it only on the points but on the circumstances. It’s not for the faint of heart; I will always be the coach of the first Girona that went up to Primera. They are moments. It’s not about who’s better or worse, it’s about all of us working together to make the club grow and the fans to benefit. You have to enjoy the moment, that there are many people who do not remember the team in Segona B or suffering to save themselves in Segona A not so long ago.

-A little bird told me that you and Míchel have seen each other in some padel match. Are they talking about points and records?

Sometimes we played, yes, when our obligations allowed us. We have a relationship. It’s not daily or very intimate, but we know each other. I even had the chance to watch their training.

-Who is better at playing paddle?

He plays on the left and I play on the right… We both have a lot to improve.

-You understand Catalan perfectly and let some words go.

Of course. I understand it perfectly since I arrived for a family matter and because I spent the summer on the coast of Barcelona. However, I express myself better and am more confident speaking in Spanish. Míchel had a lot of courage to make it public that he wanted to learn it and that he dares to hold press conferences in Catalan.

-In 2018, his Girona team finished sixth and also dreamed of theEuropa League. How do you remember those games and what was missing to enter them?

Then we found it very difficult, I guess like Míchel now. Everyday life is full of unseen difficulties. We tried until the last moment, but our main effort was made earlier, achieving a goal that was almost a utopia: to keep enough. Experience tells me that in the last games, the best teams prove that they are. We didn’t have that much ability to fight against big squads.

-For what may come, you competed in Europe with Sevilla and Espanyol. Is it very difficult to be in three competitions?

Honestly, it conditions a lot. It has a lot of bad things and some good things, including the experience of being there, the motivation for the players and the fans. It’s also positive in terms of squad management because it’s easy for coaches to share the spotlight between players. On the contrary, it does confuse and limit the objective of the League. There are ways to recover well, but it takes all the energy and concentration in every game and players who are not used to it notice it more. At Sevilla they were used to it and it was even strange not to play during the week. It had nothing to do with Espanyol. Physically they weren’t used to it and it didn’t give them the ability to compete that much.

-What would you say to the fans who want to be there?

I can speak as a coach and as a fan, which I am. You have to be ambitious on both sides. It will really be difficult for Girona to have more opportunities like this to reach Europe. You have to go to all of them and take advantage of it; later it will be managed. If it comes, great, if it doesn’t, nothing happens. The brake should never be applied.

-What do you feel when you see players you had as Juanpe, Bernardo, Stuani or Borja competing and surrendering in Primera?

In the end, an emotional bond is generated. With Borja, who has been injured, we watched a few games together. I am very happy for them, some of whom arrived with me and were from a lower level because they played in Second Division. Now they compete against the best in the world. We have all evolved football-wise, personally and financially. It fills me with satisfaction to see them. I would also like to extend recognition to the workers and people of the club. For example Quique Cárcel which, from the shadows, has always been holding on and achieving all the goals of promotion or play-off. He has always been able to rebuild the team and deserves his recognition.

– Do you think that Prison is undervalued by the environment?

I don’t know how it is valued or how it is measured. I, who know him and have worked with others, can say that his work is very good and that the relationship with the trainers is sincere, close and honest. It causes a lot of problems for the coaches. I don’t know what the fans think about it, but if people take stock, the grade it deserves is an excellent one.

-From the outside, how did you see the post-Machín transition that ended with the relegation?

With Eusebio, at the outset, the players could have some positive momentum from the good previous season, however, football is treacherous and when you relax, you pay dearly. Girona was a candidate to fight to avoid relegation, but so many consecutive defeats were not normal.

-And then two kicks in the play-off against Elx and Rayo.

I consider that he was right by making the maximum financial effort to try to climb the first year. The idea was good and it was ready, but it is difficult with so many roosters in the same coop.

-Watching those two finals, did you think “oysters, poor people, again”?

If Lugo’s day with me was dramatic, against Elche it was super unfair. In two games, Elche scored once and went up as a team eminently inferior to Girona, as it had shown in the regular League. That’s why football is the king sport. Afterwards, I consider that, although Girona could have won, Rayo deserved to go up. The third was the good one and competed well in Primera. Girona has been lucky enough to play the way the coach feels and this gives results. This makes it easier to convince the players.

-Do you remember how you experienced the ascent in Tenerife?

I saw it on TV with the nerves of a fan. There are times when you’re a coach, but I’m also a fan of the team I’ve been with for a long time. I feel very strongly about Girona and I consider them my team along with Numància. If they ask me what my team is, without a doubt, I answer that Girona.

-Have you ever regretted leaving?

No. There is no going back. You never know what would have happened. It was the right time after having had many choices or temptations. Sometimes, things have come together. I said it was an irrefutable opportunity and, between that Girona and that Sevilla, anyone who was a professional would have chosen the same. There are also cycles. After five very demanding seasons, the club was no longer the same as when he had arrived. I never regret decisions.

-What is your relationship now with the managers of Girona?

Good. With Delfí (Geli), Elena (Sanjosé), Nacho (Mas-Bagà), Pere (Guardiola) and the rest of the workers is good. Sometimes I would like to go see them more, but due to time or not to mislead them, I don’t go there much. Of course, I spent a whole week watching Míchel’s training sessions and analyzing the method they use. It is good to be grateful. I am enormously grateful to Girona just as they recognize my work here.

-Is it a partner?

Yes. Although when I go to Montilivi they want me to sit in the market and then my daughters get angry because they can’t be with me. I can’t celebrate goals in the box office, although I’ve never been very effusive. Of course, I’m very happy inside.

-The club keeps growing. Shop, Sports City, looking at Europe…Feeling healthy envy?

Healthy envy and admiration. I love that it has these infrastructures and at the same time remains a family club. I always said that you had to invest in facilities because this would stay with the city over time. The work in the planter is also very important and it is done very well here. Quique brought Santi Pou into my era to empower him. I was recently talking to Albert Síria to congratulate him and we remembered that a few years ago there were no dwarfs to help in training. However, we were lucky enough to get players from the house like Pere Pons, Granell too, in addition to Mas, Coris, Rovirola, Carbó… Now those who go up have more base. It is important to invest in the seedling because it can allow some income over time.

-He has always said that one of his great satisfactions had been to balance the number of Girona shirts that were seen between the little ones compared to Barça and Madrid. He did a lot of work here.

Yes. It is unquestionable and has been seen for a long time. Look at my daughter’s school you can’t wear football team shirts to avoid trouble, but the day after Girona beat Madrid 4-2, there was a pile of it. My daughter too, of course. I don’t know if I laid the groundwork, but it has changed a lot and it has nothing to do with it. We have all collaborated to build what Girona is now socially.

-This year he spent a few months in Elche. What are you planning for next season?

Coaches, now it is not what we want, but what is offered to us. Situations will change, although not many. Luckily, there aren’t as many problems going abroad as there were a few years ago. Football is global and international and it is necessary to assess outside situations. I’m charging batteries and training.

-Each case has its particularities, but what explanation do you find in the four dismissals with Sevilla, Espanyol, Alabès and Elche?

It’s getting harder and harder for a manager to finish a season. Everyone wants immediate results but building takes time. Each situation was different. In Sevilla we did a good job. We were leaders on the thirteenth day, which is not easy at all. We paid for elimination in the Europa League at the last second and there were also other things besides sports. Then we arrived at Espanyol, last, and with the promise that with the winter signings it would be different and they did not allow us to continue. In Alabès we were relegated from relegation. Then with the other coaches the team went from bad to worse. Elche was a way to return to Spanish football.