At the presentation of the new coach Juan Carlos Garrido, the President Miguel Guillén took questions from members of the press about the motives for the change on the green-and-white bench, vacated by Pepe Mel in favour of the coach from Valencia.

Welcome message: “We only have gratitude for what Pepe Mel has done here. The Board considered all aspects of this decision, a lot of thought but still very sad. Now there is a new exciting time opening up for Real Betis. We want the end the dynamic of bad results. We are here to make decisions. We opted for Juan Carlos Garrido based on his substantial experience in important clubs. He has the full support of the board and is considered the right person to change the team's results. His talk to the team centred on work which we all feel is what is needed. He has the ability to meet the objective of turning this bad situation around. We wish him luck right from the first day”.

The anger of the fans: “It was a painful decision because of the implications but it is true that we should make decisions. We understood that the competitive situation the club is going through required a radical change. We were just not getting the results that would put us at ease. We have done the right thing because we wanted the new coach to have time to get a grip of the team in two matches before having to face up to another League match. He has 15 days to really get to know the team. We are under scrutiny every weekend we play. Depending on the result of the match the fans judge us. We all have our share of responsibility in the good and the bad. People are held to account when they have had a reasonable margin on time. The situation from a sporting point of view was critical, 15 matches is not enough to determine if some of the players were worthy or not. I fully understand and I can admit diversity of opinion but in no way does that justify that violence occurs on the pretext of a decision that has been made”.

Support for Garrido: “What happened last night is beyond all logic. It is not representative of the Betis spirit. All the work we put in to change the image of the club went out the window yesterday. I hope that we are all united with our coach. It is the future of Real Betis. Notwithstanding the team's results Betis needs all the Betis fans to get over the situation the club is going through”.

How much responsibility do you have for the dismissal of Pepe Mel?:“We are all Betis. When a decision is made I am part of it. The Sporting Director and the Board coincided that the moment had come to change because the team had plunged into a very negative dynamic. Over the last few years we have been in similar situations and we decided not to make any changes then. This time we thought it was better to bring a new coach”.

You ratified Mel last week?: “It was a decision taken by each and every professional who is a member of the Board. Obviously the Sporting management and technical secretariat had a lot of input in the decision. Since we came to the Club, Betis' interests have always come before anything else. That is how it should be. I did not openly imply anything in any media last week. Decisions are not vested in a single person, many people participate".

Rafael Gordillo statement prior to the match in Lyon: “You will have to ask him about that. He does not form part of the Clubs sporting management or the Board of Directors. There is no need for me to say what Rafael Gordillo symbolises. When it comes to making decisions that doesn't affect him”.

Did you think that what happened yesterday was possible?: “We were aware of the effect a decision like this could have on the fans. What have demonstrated that as a Club we are open to criticism. But nothing can justify the acts of violence that took place around the stadium perpetrated by a handful of individuals. I believe there to be other motives behind the orchestrated acts. It has been the most difficult decision since I have been here. I had a friendship with Mel. Above everything else the interests of Real Betis had to prevail. I believe it was the right decision given the grave situation the first team was in”.

Confidence in the future: "Apart from the decisions we have to make, the main thing is to demonstrate that the decision is correct. I am convinced that with hard work and effort we will get the most important thing for a football club, and that is good results. That is the way we will diffuse the anger. I cannot say what the next decisions will be. There is much work ahead, we will continue making important decisions for the good of Betis".