‘Looking Forward’ – Cifuentes On Cup Clash

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‘Looking Forward’ – Cifuentes On Cup Clash

Martí Cifuentes has shared his excitement surrounding the English domestic cup competitions as he prepares to take his side to Huddersfield Town this Wednesday.

2025-08-13T09:00+01:00

by Sam Jones

Published

13 Aug, 2025

‘Looking Forward’ – Cifuentes On Cup Clash

Martí Cifuentes has shared his excitement surrounding the English domestic cup competitions as he prepares to take his side to Huddersfield Town this Wednesday.

Sam Jones

2025-08-13T09:00+01:00

‘Looking Forward’ – Cifuentes On Cup Clash

Martí Cifuentes has shared his excitement surrounding the English domestic cup competitions as he prepares to take his side to Huddersfield Town this Wednesday.

Sam Jones

2025-08-13T09:00+01:00

‘Looking Forward’ – Cifuentes On Cup Clash

Martí Cifuentes has shared his excitement surrounding the English domestic cup competitions as he prepares to take his side to Huddersfield Town this Wednesday.

Sam Jones

2025-08-13T09:00+01:00

‘Looking Forward’ – Cifuentes On Cup Clash

Martí Cifuentes has shared his excitement surrounding the English domestic cup competitions as he prepares to take his side to Huddersfield Town this Wednesday.

Sam Jones

2025-08-13T09:00+01:00

The Spaniard got off to a winning start as City Manager on Sunday, defeating Sheffield Wednesday in the Sky Bet Championship and, during his pre-match press conference prior to the Carabao Cup First Round tie against the Terriers, he outlined why this is another significant fixture in the schedule…

‘An important victory’

Embracing Abdul Fatawu following our triumph on Filbert Way.

A 2-1 success at King Power Stadium, courtesy of goals from defensive duo Jannik Vestergaard and Wout Faes, put three points on the board in Cifuentes’ first competitive game in charge of the Foxes. Although there are plenty of areas to further improve on, he took heart from the manner of the result, coming from behind to claim victory.

“In terms of the whole performance I can’t say it was amazing, especially in the first half,” the 43-year-old analysed, speaking to reporters at LCFC Training Ground on Monday.

“We know that it was below our expectations and below the standards that we want to have, but it was important that we had the capacity to react and I think that’s what I probably value the most.

“Not only the mental part of the comeback and pushing until the end, something that is very important to me, but the capacity to make some adjustments as well, make it work and the bench’s impact. At the end of the day, it’s very difficult on the first day of the season and the first game because there are a lot of emotions.

“There’s still a lot of new concepts and things that we need to learn from each other. It’s fair to say that it was not a great or fantastic performance, but according to how the game scenario was, after conceding to push the way we did, it was an important victory.”

'A good team'

It’s been a perfect start to the league season for Lee Grant’s side.

Facing third tier opposition at Accu Stadium on Wednesday evening (7:45pm BST kick-off), there can be no let-up in the intensity, according to Cifuentes, who has a clear message to his players.

He continued: “I expect a difficult game because Huddersfield are a team that are currently in League 1, but I am sure they will be up there trying to push for a promotion. They are a good team, physically strong, and we need to be ready for the situations that we are going to face.

“They are aggressive in the way that they press. They have been using different set-ups but at the same time we know that their style is quite clear, so we need to be mentally ready for that kind of the game, because we want a good run in the cup.

“We have the same target for every game, for every drill on the pitch: we want to win. It doesn’t matter if it’s a small-sided game, it doesn’t matter if it’s a Sky game, if it’s a Saturday, or a Friday game, a Monday game, I just want to win, this will never change.

“For someone born in Barcelona, to experience the major cups in English football, the way it is, I think that all of them are exciting, so I’m looking forward to hopefully having a good run.”

‘Working together’

Meeting supporters ahead of the Sheff Weds game.

A strong and positive connection with the Blue Army is essential to having a successful season, Cifuentes believes, following his first experiences in the King Power Stadium dugout. It’s a feeling he also wants to take on the road during what is a long and gruelling campaign, starting in south Yorkshire on Wednesday.

“I’ve been speaking with Ricardo as a captain but also with other experienced players who have been here for a while and I think I am a big believer that togetherness is a big part in our success and that is not only the players, but the staff and the fans will play a big part in it.

“They are entitled to, and it is fair for them, to show their feelings and hopefully we can create this new opportunity for everyone. I understand that it is never easy when you come into a club after relegation.

“I do not expect for everything to be perfect, but I am convinced that we can make some work together to make sure that the fans feel more connected to us and that we can give them something back.

“We are just focusing on the things which we can control, which is to try and prepare the team the best we can for Huddersfield.”

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