Ole and Bruno’s press conference: Full transcript

Q: You mentioned the big break between games – UEFA have done that so they can have one game each day with Champions League and Europa League. Had it been a bit shorter you could have been playing the final this weekend and it wouldn’t have cut into your preparations for next season. Have you got any concerns with the schedule?

OGS: “Absolutely no concerns about next season at the moment. We have a good possibility to finish the season. Of course, this is the only way we could have finished the season and for the supporters as well to have a game on TV every day has been very important. And you look forward to the Champions League games at night and you look forward to the Europa League games and I think that has been helpful. We have to use it as preparation for this tournament but also it is almost a pre-season for next season because it is not very long until we have to get going again. It is what it is. We have to be clever when we rest people, how we train, when we play – it is just the time we are in. We can’t complain because this is the world we are in now.”

Q: Is it safe to say you are not worried that your players won’t get enough rest before the next season starts in the Premier League?

OGS: “There is no point me worrying about it. The authorities will give us as much rest as they can. Hopefully, we have 30 days at least before we start, that means we can give them a two-week holiday. They can probably not travel where they want and it gives us two weeks to prepare for the first game. But it is what it is and I can’t see a reason why I should be complaining. I have just got to make the most of it throughout the season and look after them when I can and hopefully some national team coaches will do the same as well.”

Q: Sevilla are unbeaten in 19 games – what do you have to do to beat them?

OGS: “Score more goals than them! It is not obviously as easy as that. It is a very well-organised team: aggressive style of play, pressing, they have got some very good individuals, so we have to play our best game. We have to be able to keep the ball when we can and play out of their press. We have got to be clever and creative and we have, of course, got to step up in the big moments, the last pass, the finish… because these games are so often decided either by a set-piece or a piece of individual brilliance by some players.”

Q: What did you make of the Barcelona v Bayern match last night?

OGS: “Yes we watched it. I have to say Bayern Munich are setting the standard at the moment, throughout the season really. I think the new coach came in and they have been absolutely brilliant. They’re aggressive, they press, they run, recovery runs, they’re technically adept. It was a top-class performance by a top-class team.”

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