Sevilla head coach Matias Almeyda has revealed why he took off Super Eagles striker Akor Adams in his side's 1-1 draw against Girona, Soccernet.ng reports.
The 25-year-old is the club's top scorer with six goals, and the decision to take him off when Sevilla were a goal down surprised many.
Thomas Lemar broke the deadlock at the Estadio Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán inside two minutes before a 92nd-minute Kike Salas strike salvaged a point for the seven-time UEFA Europa League winners.
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Why Akor Adams was subbed off in Sevilla's draw against Girona
The decision to take Adams off stunned the fans in the stadium, as one could tell they were bewildered. In his post-match presser, Almeyda revealed he chose to take the Nigerian off because his team weren't accurate with their crossing, and also wanted to give Alexis Sanchez more minutes.
“Well, I respect what people might say, and I know why I make my decisions. I assess how the players jump; I know who jumps higher, who has more time to head the ball, and it doesn't matter if one is two meters tall and the other one meter sixty,” the Argentine said in quotes revealed by Futbol Fantasy.
“There's a story behind Alexis Sánchez, and I thought it was appropriate to bring him on with ten minutes left, that he might be able to see something, to achieve something, and that's why I made the change.
“Nothing guarantees that just because you bring on tall players, you'll score a header, because in fact, we haven't even scored one yet.
“Because the crosses weren't good either. So my football analysis is different. And I make mistakes, too,” the 52-year-old continued.
Ultimately, Almeyda clarified that he aims to help the club win, even if his decisions can go wrong sometimes.
“Well, I tried to send messages on the first day. Obviously, people want to win. And we want to win. Everyone wants to win.
“I would never ask anything of people. Because that infringes on freedom of expression. And some countries infringe on freedom of expression.
“And that's wrong because they do it to journalists, to those of us who make statements. And I'm against that. I stand for democracy,” the former AEK Athens coach concluded.
Sevilla are currently 13th in the La Liga with 25 points from 23 games, a far cry from their goal to qualify for European competitions at the end of the season.
