Omri Altman: "We are not coming to enjoy ourselves, we are coming to win"

Hapoel Tel Aviv held a final training session in Bergamo this evening, followed by a press conference ahead of tomorrow's match (Thursday, 21:30, Sport4) in the playoff round of the Conference League qualifiers against Atalanta.

Coach Elyaniv Barda said:

"Hapoel Tel Aviv is a club that always wants to succeed in Europe and reach the final stages. We understand the magnitude of the occasion and the opponent. It is a great honor that the opposing coach says warm words about us; in my view, he is one of the best coaches in the world. We know they have changed their system, they played three friendly matches. This is a Serie A team, we understand the difference in levels and we will have to do much more than just play a good game to achieve a good result here."

Regarding the expected demonstrations, Barda noted: "We will isolate all background noise; football and sports are supposed to unite. It would not be right for us to state our strengths at the press conference. Regarding the opponent, they have strengths in almost every point on the pitch. It is never a good time to face a team like Atalanta, but we come with great belief; in football, things have happened before."

Omri Altman added:

"We come with complete belief against a team that is perhaps the best in the competition. We come to every game to win. We are not here to enjoy ourselves, but to do the job and advance to the next stage."

On the demonstrations, Altman stated: "The demonstrations interest me as much as a garlic peel; we are here to focus on football. Football is an experience that is supposed to unite countries and people, and this is not the place to demonstrate politically."