Roger Schmidt: "We always believe in ourselves"

PREVIEW

Confident, Roger Schmidt, in the preview press conference of Vizela-Benfica, a clash of matchday 22 of the Liga Bwin League, which takes place this Saturday, February 25, at 8:30 pm at the Estádio Futebol Clube de Vizela, highlighted the conviction of the team in the work they do every day and in the football they display game after game, this before a "difficult" duel in Minho. 

Vizela usually plays with five defenders, do you expect a more defensive opponent, as happened this season with other opponents?

I expect a difficult game. Vizela has been good this season, we already had a first impression in the reverse fixture, at home, where we scored [the winning goal by 2-1] in the last seconds. They have confirmed several times this season that they believe in themselves, they have a lot of individual quality, speed, and we are looking for solutions. It is not easy to play against Vizela, especially at their home ground. Last week they played with a line of four defenders, but they can have different approaches. We're used to it, we don't know exactly how the opponents will play against us. We showed that we always believe in ourselves and we were able to score at the end. We must be prepared for the story of the game, and we are confident that we can win.

Rafa suffered a lot of fouls in the last match, is he physically well? Do you feel more pressure to become champion and win games at this stage?

Rafa is fine, he always suffers a lot of fouls, but there is no physical problem. We have 13 games left to be champions, at the beginning of the season it was 34. The pressure hasn't increased, but it is there. We must win almost every game, we want to give the Championship to the fans, we work hard for that. Every game is very important for us to get points, and we will need a lot of them to be Champions. We are in a good situation because we have everything in our hands, we are the only team depending on themselves.

Since he arrived at Benfica, Gonçalo Guedes has only once played with Gonçalo Ramos. Are they compatible players?

Yes, of course! Gonçalo Guedes has already shown how important it was that we signed him. He has already made excellent games, even when he wasn't in the starting lineup. He did well in the last two games as a substitute. Gonçalo Ramos was injured and Gonçalo Guedes only played with him in two games. Of course they can play together.

Aursnes is becoming a key player in Benfica and the fans like him. Did you expect that when he was signed?

I'm very happy to have him, and I'm glad the transfer went through. We need to find balance in the team, and he gives us balance, because he is very complete. Maybe he is the one who runs the most in the team, if necessary, he runs 13 or 14 kilometers per match, whether he is in the defensive midfield or in the attacking midfield. He is a very reliable player, tactically intelligent, and plays very good football. These kinds of players are essential for any team. I'm happy and perhaps a little surprised that he has developed so quickly and the way he can adjust his behavior depending on the position. He always maintains the same level, regardless of the position, which is very good.