Celta Vigo manager Claudio Giráldez has moved to play down expectations on Fer López after his arrival from Wolves this month.
AS have comments from the Celta Vigo boss. It seems he’s keen to play down fans expectations of the Wolves loanee.
López returned to his former club earlier this month after a miserable few months at Wolves. He joined them in the summer but failed to establish himself under Vitor Pereira or Rob Edwards.
He had been reluctant to leave in the summer as it was. Reports at the time indicated it was very much a case of Celta selling to Wolves because of an offer that they could not refuse.
Now they’ve been reunited, with López joining on loan until the summer. The hope is that he can slot back into the side and continue where he left off.
They very much need him to start making an impact too, with Brian Zaragoza now set to leave for Roma. Reports on Saturday have indicated that he’s on his way to the Serie A club. That news broke just before Giráldez held his latest press conference.
Reporters then asked him about replacements for their star man. After that, the focus was on their January addition form Wolves. Giráldez, though, is seemingly keen to play things down.
“We have to remember that we’re not smarter than everyone else,” he said.
“If he didn’t play the minutes, we thought he might have at Wolverhampton, it’s for a reason—it must be the coach’s fault, the team’s level, the adaptation process… He’s not Maradona, and it’s important that we understand that.
“He’s a player who’s still developing, getting stronger and better all the time. If we expect him to score a screamer in every game and dribble past five defenders every time he gets the ball, we’re mistaken.
“He’s just one of the team; we shouldn’t put any more pressure on him than that. Players like him, with his age and limited experience in the top flight, should go out there and enjoy themselves and play freely.”