Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
JUST TURN UP? DO ME A FAVOUR
Europaleague,tonight,7.45pm
DAVID Healy says the only people talking up Linfield as firm favourites against Floriana in the Europa League tonight are those hoping to see the club fail.
Little is known of the Maltese champions, but Healy insists the Irish League kingpins don’t have a god given right to progress.
He also says last year’s sizzling home win over Qarabag and charge to the playoff stages of the Europa League will count for nothing at Windsor Park.
“Are we favourites? I don’t know and I don’t care,” said Healy. “There’s certainly no complacency from us in terms of preparation.
“I don’t know why people should start expecting Linfield to simply turn up and win European games, because it’s not something we have done year in, year out.
“We did pretty well last year but before that no Irish League club had achieved what we achieved last year.
“Other people might think there’s a little bit of complacency, but those people probably don’t support Linfield or care about Linfield.
“They’re maybe trying to add a little bit of extra pressure on us, but certainly there’s no complacency here. we are ready for a really hard game.”
Healy suspects Floriana, who have a strong South American influence, will fancy their chances in a one-off game in front of an empty stadium.
“People might be thinking, Linfield got a great draw, but Floriana will be thinking the same,” he said. “Like us, they will view it as a winnable tie.”