Carlos Soler: 'The coach gets the team playing together'

Carlos, HOW HAVE THE FIRST FEW WEEKS UNDER LUIS ENRIQUE BEEN?

"I know Luis Enrique well, because I played with the Spanish national team when he was coach. He's a coach who has faith in me, he tells us a lot of things and his message gets through and works with the team. Personally, I like his playing philosophy a lot. He gets the team working together, that we're united. He's a coach that's going to give us a lot - he's already doing so - and we're working on his ideas. I'm sure that everything will work well."

HOW HAS PRE-SEASON GONE SO FAR?

"It's very important because it helps us prepare well for the season. We work in very good conditions, we train hard, and we are playing some tough games, which is going to help us later, even if we haven't had the results we would have liked. This games help us physically, builds confidence and understanding between us on the pitch. We're happy with the work we've done so far and with what we want to do. We want to have a great season."

IS THIS YOUR FIRST VISIT TO JAPAN?

"Yes! Last year, I arrived too late, so I wasn't able to go on the tour to Japan. We love it here. It's my first time, but whether we're at the hotel or the stadium, we have a lot of support from the people here. We're happy to be here and to be able to share these moments with them here in Japan. They send us a lot of really nice messages. Today, we saw the banner for Sergio, who we think of all the time."

IS IT IMPORTANT FOR YOU TO ALWAYS SPARE A THOUGHT FOR SERGIO?

"Sergio is a friend. These are difficult times for him and his family, but I'm sure that if we continue to give him strength, he'll be better."