Sevilla only won one of the seven games in which Pimienta did not use up all his substitutions

Sevilla let victory slip away in the final moments of the match against Mallorca (1-1). The Nervion team thus saw its chance of stringing together two consecutive victories for the first time this season and taking an important step towards confirming its position in the fight for European qualification spots frustrated . The Nervion team managed to go into the break with the lead, but in the second half they struggled to maintain the result and ended up conceding in one of the last plays of the match. García Pimienta's management of the substitutes was called into question as the Catalan coach did not make any substitutions until the 82nd minute of the match. Beyond that, he only made three changes when he had the option of making up to five.

The coach was asked about these decisions after the match and said the following : “It is very difficult to come on as a substitute when the game is going well. I think the team was doing quite well , it is true that in the last few minutes Agoumé came on for Sow, who was carrying a lot of pain in his thighs. Substitutions are always to help the team and I consider it the best way. The fact of coming on as a substitute, on many occasions, is because you need to because of discomfort. I did it because there was a need. It is true that you come on cold, they are not in the midst of the game, but I think that those who came on did not do badly. I did not make any more changes because I considered that the people who were on were well enough to finish the game . In the last few minutes, when we were defending more than attacking, I thought that the people who were on were doing well .”

The truth is that, after 25 games , García Pimienta has made all five substitutions in 72% of the matches played. That is to say, Sevilla have not used up all their substitutions on seven occasions during the league season (against Las Palmas, Girona, Leganés, Rayo Vallecano and Atlético de Madrid in the first round and against Espanyol and Mallorca in the second round). They have only won one of these matches.

García Pimienta publicly stated that he was not completely satisfied with the squad selection made by Víctor Orta during the winter transfer market. The coach stated that "it will be difficult for us to face the matches with guarantees" and admitted that "we have a very short squad to face the remaining matches" pointing out that the midfielder and left back positions had been left lacking.

These statements caused some friction between the coach and the sports management, although in the end the relationship was restored . As a result of this situation, it could be expected that the coach, given the belief that he lacks resources, would make less use of the substitutes' bench, although since the January transfer market closed and this press conference took place, yesterday's match is the only one in which he has not used up all his substitutions . Since the winter transfer market opened, he has only made five substitutions in two matches (against Espanyol and Mallorca, two matches with identical results and scenarios).

However, there remains the perception among a large sector of fans and commentators that the coach does not improve the team with changes and that when he makes them, he does so too late in order to react to what the match offers.