Al-Sadd coach Juanma has expressed his satisfaction with the progression of his side’s preparations ahead of the 2022-23 season.
Speaking to the club website in an exclusive chat, the coach said: “Preseason has been very good for us, everything is going in the ideal manner. We completed our preparatory period in Doha, and then we have intensified our preparation at the overseas camp in Austria, so that we can take the players to the required level of readiness.”
Asked about his philosophy, the coach said: “When you describe something, you reduce the idea at the same time. For me, it’s more about the philosophy being transmitted from players to coach, than from coach to players.”
“The best philosophy is to have a good diagnosis for the players and not to interfere with their abilities.”
As for his time as assistant coach to Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, Juanma said: “It’s been two years and four months with him and we have played in high-level competitions such as the Premier League and the Champions League and with players of the highest caliber. This allows us to compete and win titles in these competitions.”
He added: “It’s so great to work with someone as special as Pep. I am so grateful to all the people I worked with at the club.”
Speaking about the objectives for the upcoming season, the coach said: “This season is different because our Qatari internationals who are usually with us will not be with us this time.”
“So we don’t have specific goals now but we will define our goals through the season.”
When asked to evaluate the preseason period so far, Juanma replied: “This is related to the last question because one of the goals is to watch and discover the skills and abilities that each young player possesses. When we have a problem due to the absence of international players we also have to see the opportunity to see the young players.”
“So far they are working hard to understand all the things we do in training sessions. They pay attention to the instructions and make a lot of effort with the best intention.”
Finally, for his message to Al-Sadd fans, Juanma said: “I don’t like sending a message with words. I’d rather the fans like what they see when the team plays, than they like what I can say in words.”
