CD Tenerife manager Álvaro Cervera made his first public appearance on Saturday following the death of Jesús de Miguel eleven days ago, and acknowledged that both he and the squad are going through a difficult time, but that they must move forward, even if only slowly, to keep the team going.
The Tenerife-born manager admitted at a press conference that it will be very difficult to return to the way things were in the near future, and that some players in the dressing room may be more affected than others, at least outwardly, and he understands that everyone will cope with it as best they can, as it depends on each individual’s personality.
«Nothing like this has ever happened to anyone before; it’s something that’s happened to all of us for the first time, and there are days and days… it’s complicated, it’s difficult, but we have to keep moving forward, even if it’s slowly,» he told reporters.
CD Tenerife: Grief continues to weigh heavily on the manager and the team
Cervera makes no secret of the fact that what happened with De Miguel «is something you cannot simply brush aside or put to one side; it is not like anything else in life; it is something that stays with you, but you have to carry on», and he realises that, because of what has happened, «we will not return to normality, not now, but not for a very long time».
He also acknowledges that what has happened is evident on his face: «I suppose so, because I’ve been in football for many years, this has never happened to me before and it’s getting to me, but that doesn’t mean you have to do things badly; we have to keep working so that the team can move forward.»
Cervera maintains that when they’re together at work every day, «it feels as though we’re doing fine, but what we don’t realise is that when we’re not together, that also counts for a lot, because we each have our own way of coping and our own thoughts; I don’t know how each of us is coping, but it’s tough, it’s complicated».
Ceuta match puts the team through a mental test
Tenerife will return to action this Sunday against Ceuta at the Heliodoro Rodríguez López Stadium, and Cervera is unsure whether it is a good idea to play again so soon, especially at the very same ground where the unfortunate incident involving De Miguel took place.
«There are days when you’re feeling a bit down and you want the competition to start so you don’t spend so much time thinking about the same thing, and other times we don’t know if we’re ready to compete again and keep our minds focused. Both answers are plausible, because you just don’t know,» he admitted.
That said, he has made it clear that no player in the Blue and Whites‘ squad has asked him not to play in matches due to the tragic death of their team-mate.
Jesús Owono: Cervera is cautious in his comments on the suspension
Meanwhile, regarding the twelve-match ban imposed on goalkeeper Jesús Owono, who was involved in the incident with De Miguel, the Tenerife manager simply replied that the current regulations had been applied, and preferred to reserve his opinion.
«I believe there is a law that must be obeyed, but that law does not cover what has happened, so they have stuck to the letter of the law and imposed the matches permitted under the regulations. Anything else I might say is just my own opinion, and I must keep that to myself, because it won’t get us anywhere,» he concluded.
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