Goalkeeper Guillermo ‘Memo’ Ochoa says it was his decision to remain at Malaga despite not getting any playing time.
The Mexican international has played understudy to Carlos Kameni since his arrival from French outfit Ajaccio in August 2014, only appearing in Copa del Rey games, but made his La Liga debut against Deportivo la Coruna last weekend when coming on for the injured Cameroon stopper.
Kameni is expected to be out for up to two months with a torn meniscus and Ochoa is hoping he can now stake a claim for a regular spot in his absence.
“If I am here then it was my decision to stay because I wanted to continue playing in Europe, in Spain,” the experienced 30-year-old told reporters.
“I had to assess the situation and when you find an obstacle to your career you have to fight it. Football puts you in difficult positions and you must stand up and work. I could talk about a lot of things but I want to leave them in the past.
“I’m here, I’m continuing here and now there is an important game coming up [against Sporting Gijon] and I prefer to focus on the present. Looking ahead, we’ll see what happens but I don’t want to get ahead of myself.
“I’m taking things step-by-step and the important thing is the next match.”
