Lucas responds to Piqué's indifference to possible Copa del Rey elimimation
“This year they (Barcelona) say this; last year it was the opposite,” the Real Madrid midfielder said in an interview during a media event in Madrid on Friday.
Gerard Pique seemed to shrug off his side’s away defeat to Sevilla in the first leg of the Copa del Rey quarter final on Wednesday, as well as the importance of regaining a title that Barcelona have won the last four years in a row. Perhaps the Barcelona captain, who also complained about there being “too many games”, has his eyes on bigger prizes.
“If we turn can it over [in the second leg]… fine. If not, there will be another year,” said Pique after the game in which a Messi-less Barcelona were outclassed by the hosts.
Real Madrid, meanwhile, are well placed to reach the semi-finals after their 4-2 victory over Girona on Thursday. And Lucas Vazquez has had his say on Pique’s apparent indifference to elimination from the competition that probably comes third in the pecking order of priority for Barcelona, who will be eager to ensure their great rivals do not have their name etched into the Champions League trophy four a fourth year running.
Although for the Real Madrid midfielder, there is no order of priority, as his side are determined to fight for all three prizes “to the fullest” of their ability this year, however unlikely a LaLiga title victory may look at this stage.
“This year they (Barcelona) say this; last year it was the opposite,” Lucas said in an interview during a media event in Madrid on Friday. “The important thing is to go for all the titles.”
On winning the Champions League and the Cup, Lucas believes the best is to “play a good role in LaLiga and continue as we have in the last two games. This is how the titles are obtained. You have to play with intensity and a desire to win, and face the three competitions to the fullest.”
Lucas: Santiago Solari getting the best out of players at an individual level
Since the arrival of coach Santiago Solari, who took over after Julen Lopetegui was sacked at the end of October, Lucas feels he has played a more important role and is optimistic they can win silverware with the Argentine at the helm.
“He (Solari) decides who steers the team. He is getting the best out of players at an individual level and that makes the whole group benefit. May that last until the end of the season so we can win titles, which is what we all want.”
After a couple of shaky weeks, Madrid are back to winning ways at the same time that a number of important players are returning to the fold after injury.
And with all the rumours and talk of possible reinforcements coming in during the January transfer window, Lucas says what’s more important for Madrid’s hopes of silverware is the return of players like Gareth Bale, Toni Kroos and Marcos Llorente (Bale is aiming to be back in the squad for the Madrid derby on 9 February; Kroos and Llorente both came on to play a half hour against Girona on Thursday).
"There is little time left [until the market closing]. The best reinforcements are those that were injured that are coming back in now. We are going to need them all. We have a great squad,” said the 27-year-old, who has four goals and three assists to his name this season.
"We are right now. At first we had a couple of slip-ups that didn’t help us at all. We have felt good in the last few games and we want to continue with those good feelings. That way we will achieve great things.”
