Making the trip to Saudi Arabia, getting lost in the way to the training complex and having to add one more game to an already tight schedule seem to be enough reasons for Ernesto Valverde to question the Spanish Federation's decision to change the format of this competition.
Speaking in a press conference that was delayed after Barcelona's driver got lost in the way to the training ground, coach Valverde admitted that he liked the Spanish Super Cup back when it was played in Spain, and furthermore, he questioned the need to have more teams invited to the competition.
"I always thought about this tournament as the first of the season between the league and cup champions. I think it was fine back then. We'll have a say on the format once the tournament is over," Valverde said.
Then, the coach aimed a dig at the two teams that were added to complete the Final Four format established by the Spanish Football Federation.
"From a sports perspective, we all know there can only be one league champion and there will only be one cup champion each season. It's weird to have to play this tournament with two invited teams," Valverde added.
The former Athletic Club boss looked back at his previous Super Cup experiences in an effort to play down the need of fighting for this title at home.
"Let me give you a statistic. This is my fifth Super Cup trip. In the first three, I had to play for the title away from home. Then, when I won the league, we had to play for this tournament away from home. It's quite odd. We'll see what happens, because there could be one more game for us if we win tomorrow...or not," Valverde concluded.
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