Real Sociedad - Athletic, the derby of morbid

Oyarzabal celebrates the victory of Real in the final of the Copa del Rey played last Saturday.AFP7 via Europa Press / Europa Press

• Night of the ciborium for the Royal

The calendar has those quirks.

The Cup final that Real Sociedad won against Athletic will be repeated this Thursday in league format (Movistar La Liga, 9:00 p.m.) just four days after the Sevillian clash, when the blue and white are still experiencing the hangover of victory and the rojiblanco the wounds of the lost opportunity against the close rival still sting.

Fleeces of destiny.

While Marcelino García, who ended up surprised and angry for not finding any excuse for defeat, and no explanations for the poor performance of his team, tries to put the pieces together to assemble a team that is competitive again in the next final that comes in less After two weeks, Imanol, who after the amateur mode returns to the role of coach, needs to consolidate another victory to keep his team in the European zone.

It will be the same game, but possibly very different.

La Real, who could not have Illarramendi in the final, except to collect the trophy, will not have David Silva either, who could miss the remainder of the season.

Neither Zaldua and Guridi are fit to play.

For Imanol "the approach is the same, it is to win", he assures.

"There is no doubt that a final marks a little more because of the fear of conceding, but in the end, whether it is a final or a league match, what you have to do is prepare the team and you have to give them the tools to be able to to win the game, to be superior to the rival, and so that you arrive and the rival does not generate you ”.

Marcelino, meanwhile, assures: “You have to look ahead, and be strong, have incentives.

We must regain enthusiasm, courage and joy and be protagonists ”.

For the Real coach, the celebrations should not influence the match against Athletic: "I don't think the team gets carried away because we won this final," he says.

"We still have a lot to do and if we really want to win over all the fans and all of Gipuzkoa as we have done, it is now when we have to demonstrate more than ever the team that we are.

Marcelino believes that the defeat should not be forgotten: "Now we are in the recovery phase, because it is a painful memory, but I think we cannot forget it so as not to make the same mistakes."

In the press conferences of the two coaches before the derby on Wednesday, the issue of the possible corridor to the Real came up, and Marcelino was blunt: "We will do the corridor, as appropriate, in homage to the winner."

A couple of hours earlier, in Zubieta, Imanol Alguacil had pointed out that the matter did not concern him and highlighted the behavior of the Bilbao footballers: “I don't know exactly if there will be a corridor, it is what matters the least to me.

I want to make it very clear whether they do it or not, the Athletic players showed what a great team they are, because it is easy to be right, but when greatness is shown it is when you lose, and they were very good ”.

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