Unai Emery Quotes

I like to be in contact with the ball, have possession, to play.

For me, possession is to keep the ball while you are waiting for the possibility to penetrate. Every pass is for a reason.

When you get into the game you've got be thinking, when I get into the attacking third I'm gonna be freakin' creative.

I have to open the game from my position. It's really important to play with the ball.

For me, good football is not about how many skills you show or how many players you beat. It's about making the right decision every time you have the ball.

I prefer getting a lot of the ball.

Always, even with the U17s in Spain, U19s, we play from the back, and we try to improve on that a lot. So I always enjoy having the ball at my feet.

You pressure, you want possession, you want to attack. Some teams can't or don't pass the ball. What are you playing for? What's the point? That's not football. Combine, pass, play. That's football - for me, at least.

If I get out when playing a shot which is not a part of my game, then it will be bad.

As a player I was taught the importance of working four or five passes within your team and then stretching the play. That's something I believe in strongly as a coach.

I want the ball for 90 minutes. When I don't have the ball, I go high pressing because I want the ball.

Sometimes in midfield, it's nice because you do get a little bit more of the ball, and maybe out wide you rely on people to get you the ball.

In the midfield, I'm not the most comfortable playing with my back to the goal, and in the midfield you find that ball a lot.

When you have a lot of ball possession, you have a lot of ball possession to create chances, not to play the ball around and not score.

I need to play smarter and protect the football.

Every game, well most of them, come down to turnovers and the turnover battle.

My teams have always been dominant about having the ball but having the ball to create opportunities. That's always been the clear way of my work.

I always play football in my team, and I know that if you play too much long ball, then it's difficult.

Jorginho is really suitable to the way I like to play. He is a player that has many good sides to him. He wants to work hard, and he's very fast in moving the ball, which is important for us, although there is also Cesc Fabregas, who has the same potential as Jorginho.

I do not know if we play the most beautiful or attractive football, but we certainly play more intelligently, more functionally and more precisely than anyone else.

When a team plays you by pressing so high, if you do not take advantage, they grow in their field, with their atmosphere and the goals they are making.

We always want to play and be dominant with the ball, but we respect the opposition.

I like to create chances, to shoot when I play farther forward, but I also like playing deeper, as you have more time on the ball.

The game in Spain is more about technique and about getting more touches on the ball. That's why I like it so much.

It's football. The game hasn't changed. There's not tons of new concepts every year that go in. Offense is offense; it's our job to move the ball, to score points, and keep our defense off the field.