Sevilla president hails ´best away game´

Sevilla President Jose Maria del Nido has not given up on qualifying for the Champions League next season.

A regular participant in Europe’s elite club competition, Sevilla are seventh in the La Liga table – 12 points off fourth place and the final Champions League qualification place berth. Valencia occupy fourth, but they were beaten 1-0 by Sevilla on Sunday, who also secured an encouraging 1-1 draw at home to champions Barcelona on March 13.”Yesterday was maybe Sevilla’s best away game,” Del Nido said after their victory in Valencia’s Estadio Mestalla.”We didn’t just play great football but also were able to create a lot of chances on goal. We went for the win from the start, which is what we will have to do in the remaining games.””We are going for third or fourth place. There are 27 points available, and what makes me most proud is that the players see it as a possibility.””Nine games is a lot, and the other teams have different commitments that will surely take their toll.”Gregorio Manzano took over as Sevilla coach from the sacked Antonio Alvarez in September. Results have been mixed under the 55-year-old and it remains to be seen if he can do enough to secure his future on the bench at the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan. “We have said many times that we will wait until the end of the season to evaluate what the manager has done in his time here, and whether he will continue,” Del Nido said.”Talking about him continuing or not is only going to distract us from the next nine games.”