Iñigo Pérez faces a limited squad in the international break

Villarreal head into the league’s long international break with a clear intention: to use this time to push forward the changes that Iñigo Pérez has been bringing in. But, as MARCA reports, the large number of players called up by their national teams will make it difficult for the coach to run the kind of “mini pre-season” session he wanted.

On top of those absences, the break is also affected by squad availability: with Santi Comesaña injured, the team has eight first-team outfield players available alongside the three goalkeepers, per MARCA.

A break with limits

Even so, Iñigo Pérez tried to keep a positive angle after the win over Levante. He acknowledged that losing control during an international break is stressful, but insisted that the remaining group will work on positional situations and that the club will look to involve players from the academy. “In a break you have a lack of control because of those who leave… but with the ones who stay we’ll work on positional situations, we’ll see some kids from the academy… there are positive parts we want to take advantage of,” he said, as MARCA quotes.

He also said he prefers to stop the schedule after emotionally intense weeks, trusting the break will bring relaxation and help the team keep what’s good while dumping what he called “toxic” parts.