Deportivo La Coruna vs Levante preview - Alcarez: Levante not safe yet

Posted Sunday, May 17, 2015 by PA

Levante coach Lucas Alcaraz has expressed his frustration that his side's game with Deportivo La Coruna is being talked about as only being a must-win game for the Galicians.

Depor are level on 31 points with bottom-three sides Eibar and Granada and, with their final game being against champions-elect Barcelona at the Nou Camp, the importance of Sunday's match is clear.

However, Levante, on 36 points, are not mathematically safe yet either, as Alcaraz was at pains to point out in his pre-match press conference.

"We are fighting for survival just as much as Deportivo are," he said.

"It's true we have more points than them but we are in the same battle and we have the same objective.

"We are not playing down the importance of the game at all like everyone else seems to be doing, because that would be counter-productive to our level of intensity and focus. The opposition and the referee need to know that we are also fighting to avoid relegation.

"I don't like going to a match thinking that only one team has something to play for, I'd like to remind everyone that there are two teams playing here, because that can affect everything, like refereeing decisions and many other things, and the atmosphere is going to be against us.

"It seems as if we have nothing at stake but we do, there are just two games left and there is no time to rectify for mistakes, there is no margin for error. It is as if we aren't going to play the match seriously."

Alcaraz will be without top scorer David Barral as he has accumulated five yellow cards, but Kalu Uche has recovered from a muscle problem sustained during the week in training.

Deportivo, meanwhile, have a full squad to choose from with the exception of Cezary Will and Pablo Insua, who are still injured, although coach Victor Sanchez del Amo has left Roberto Canella, Jose Rodriguez, Isaac Cuenca, Borja Lopez, Luis Farina and Helder Costa out of the squad for the match.

Deportivo defender Sidnei called on his side's supporters to get behind their team in a match he said would define their season.

"We hope that they come to the game and support us because I'm sure if they do we'll get a good result and we'll all go home happy," the Brazilian told a press conference.

"Tomorrow we are playing for our season and we'll have to focus for the 90 minutes to achieve our objective."