Martínez Novell spoke to Oliver Dominguez, Country Manager of Flashscore Spain, about the latest news from his team and his professional career, among other things.
Flashscore: How are you enjoying the season in Toulouse?
Carles Martinez Novell: "Pretty well. This is my second season as head coach here and I'm starting to get to know everything a little better. It's true that there are some changes in the squad compared to last season, but at the same time, as I always say, it's stimulating to meet new players, create new things and at the same time learn from things we saw last year.
"There are a lot of players who were already with me and that helps. This season has been marked by slightly different moments. We started perhaps less well in terms of results, even though the feeling was good in terms of the game and above all the team was competitive, and you could feel that we could be better than the points actually indicated.
"But from the eighth game onwards, we had a good run, we won six games out of eight and I think from then on we took fewer points. We then devoted ourselves to trying to grow, to trying to be better.
"Last month was a bit difficult in terms of results, but that's part of the process. We've been working in the transfer market, we've had a lot of injuries and it's also part of our job to be able to find solutions when problems arise. We're now hoping that these final games of the season will put us in a good position."
FS: What is Toulouse's medium-term objective? Europe?
CMN: "Yes, the club's objective is to grow. That's our objective. As I always say, the club was in Ligue 2 when it was bought by RedBird and it was a team that had the ambition at the time to climb back up to the top flight, where it is today.
"The objective was, why not, to be able to fight for a few titles. We've done that in the two previous years, even winning the French Cup and being able to play in Europe as we did last year. I think winning the cup was a bit more of a surprise, but I think we deserved it.
"And now, what we want is to keep growing, to keep trying to get closer to those goals, at least to be competitive and keep ourselves healthy, calm and tenacious. And why not continue to fight to be close to the European places so that we can return to the continental stage?"
FS: Under Damien Comolli's presidency, Toulouse is known for placing a great deal of importance on data and statistics. How does that affect the way the team is managed on a day-to-day basis and also in the transfer market?
CMN: "Ultimately, as you say, there are two specific moments. The first is to be able to assess our performance, not just in terms of the result, the goals we score, or the ones we don't score.
"Or whether we have more or fewer points than expected, but also in relation to what the data tells us about our performance, whether we're achieving our goals, what we want, whether we're generating more or less xG, whether we're really capable of achieving not just numerically, but also qualitatively the areas we want, both in attack and in defence.
"All of this, at the end of the day, not only helps you to assess your performance in relation to what everyone else sees, i.e. points or goals, which are of course important, but also pushes you to be a little more objective.
"And as you said, there's the question of recruitment. We have a clear transfer strategy, including where and how we recruit. And from there, my job is to get the best out of the players we recruit, the players we have, because, as I always say, if they improve, the team will benefit."
FS: Does this type of approach interfere in any way with your own vision or that of your staff?
CMN: "No, I'm very open to listening and thinking. Last year, when we were going through more complicated times, it helped us to see where we needed to go to improve.
"When we have good results and win games, the data also helps us to know where we're succeeding and whether, as always, even when we're winning, we need to do better. So I like to have more objective feedback on what's going on, what we can improve and what we're doing well.
"And from there, logically, my job is to transpose that onto the pitch, into the feeling, to understand the feelings of the players, to understand when a player is more or less happy.
"A lot of things that are obviously within my remit, with a bit more human management. But, as I often say, it's a question of finding the balance between the data and the humanity or passion that this team also has.
FS: Coming back to Comolli, who himself has a very good track record in the world of football, having worked at Arsenal and also held positions at Liverpool and Tottenham, how does all this experience influence the club's strategy on the transfer market and also the club's overall vision?
CMN: "Unsurprisingly, he's a very important person, probably the most important person at this club. He's the one who's been building it since the club was bought, with his experience and, logically, I'm someone who likes to listen and learn from everyone.
"At the same time, I think I have the personality to know how to channel the information I receive into what I really think I should be doing in my role, which is that of coach.
"But we have a very good relationship. I like that, I like listening to him a lot and, from there, I value everything because experience is a diploma and the experience he has at the highest level is light years ahead of what I've known."
FS: Can you tell us about collaboration to achieve objectives and how you experience it?
CMN: "We both know that, at any time, he can come to my office, I can come to his, he can call me, I can call him. From there, we have a weekly meeting where we talk about all the issues we consider important for our team, the things that can be improved for the future, also in terms of the club's structure... a bit of everything. We have an impressive relationship."
FS: Do you think you've managed to impose your philosophy at Toulouse and in Ligue 1, or is it an ongoing process?
CMN: "I always say that football is about people, about players. I think that, finally, last year we saw a clear evolution from the beginning to the end of the season. This year, I think that in many ways we're better than last season, but at the same time, with the new players, we've had to find out how to strengthen them and find out how they can feel more comfortable so that they can perform well. I think that's the key.
"I have my ideas, I believe in them, and I like the football they offer, but from there, I also have to find the right balance between what I can and think and what the player is actually capable of doing.
"Everyone can learn, everyone has to learn, but there are some things you have to be able to assess to know if the player is going to enjoy it if he's going to be able to do it, if he feels comfortable. When you play with 11 players who feel at ease, the performance comes on its own."
FS: More than half the coaches in Ligue 1 are foreigners, is that a more attractive destination than in the past?
CMN: "I really like the league and I'm not just saying that because I'm here. I think it's a very attractive league, with a lot of talent and a lot of young players who can be incredible.
"The matches are very evenly balanced and in reality, it's very difficult for anyone to win a match, even for the best teams. I think we also see this level in the Champions League. The French championship is a championship that gives a lot of opportunities to young people, and in this case, it's also open to coaches from abroad who come and share our ideas."
FS: You were talking about the level of Ligue 1. What do you think of Cristiano Ronaldo's statement that the Saudi Pro League is superior to the French championship? You've been to Qatar and Kuwait. Where do you think Ligue 1 stands?
CMN: "I would never express an opinion on something I don't know. I've never coached in the Saudi league. I don't know the league, so I can't talk about that. The only thing I can tell you is that Ligue 1 is a very strong league.
"Every time we play a team from another league, all the foreign teams find it hard to get good results against us. I'm convinced of that, just look at the number of players who leave the French league to go to other leagues.
"In conclusion, I have no doubt that Ligue 1 is a league with a lot of potential. Whether it's better than other leagues is a debate I'd rather not enter into."
FS: Do you think that the presence of a team with a budget as big as PSG's is positive for Ligue 1?
CMN: "That's how it is, that's life. I always say the same thing: 'I hope that OM (Marseille) will strengthen and that Monaco will continue to buy young players'.
"Logically, I'd like Ligue 1 to be a little more competitive for the title. But I also know how difficult it is for PSG to win their matches. And from that observation, we can see how strong the competition is for the European places. Ligue 1 is very balanced in that respect.
"We're in mid-table and we can see that we're not very far from the European places and, at the same time, we're not very far from relegation.
"That proves that the league is competitive and at a good level. Now, I'll say it again: yes, I'd like everything to be a bit more equal, as I sometimes see in the Premier League, where everyone's income is a bit more equal, but it's not my role to bang my fist on the table."
FS: You spent five seasons at Espanyol's academy. What do you think of the presence in the team of home-grown players such as goalkeeper Joan Garcia and captain Javi Puado?
CMN: "As I always say, I'd like to see more of them. I've coached some very good generations at Espanyol. I owe a lot to the club and I know that when they get opportunities, the youngsters take advantage of them.
"That's the case with Joan, but there's also Angel Fortuno, who's the substitute keeper, and I know that if he played, he'd surely be as strong as the first-choice keeper.
"That's also the case with Puado and Nico Melamed, or players like Arnau Puigmal, who are both at Almeria, and who could perfectly well play for Espanyol, or Dani Villahermosa, among many others.
"I know that if they were really given the opportunity, they would do very well. The standard of the Espanyol academy is very high and, as a result, I think everyone knows that, if youngsters are given a chance, they will perform well.
Like Jofre, for example. I coached him in Infantil A (U13) and I can see how he behaves and what his level is. The boys end up playing because they're good. That's a fact of life."
FS: You were also a coach at Barcelona's youth academy. What do you think is the key to La Masia's success? It has recently produced a number of talented first-team players such as Marc Casado, Pau Cubarsi, Gavi, Lamine Yamal and Fermin Lopez.
CMN: "I think that at Barca, as at Espanyol, there is a very clear idea of how they want to play.
"As (Mikel) Arteta pointed out the other day, even though he was talking about a Masia from 40 years ago, it's a reality: the competitiveness that exists internally is healthy, and the lads climb the categories in good spirits and with this desire to be better.
"In every training session, in every exercise, the player has to perform, he has to give his best, and he has to enjoy the work that goes into achieving that.
"From the age of seven or eight, they know that they have to be good, that they have to perform. And I think that also means that when they get to the first team, they handle that pressure very well. Over and above the fact that when they have great talent, they are phenomenal."
FS: Speaking of Barca, you coached the club's youngsters and are now in charge of the first team. With a philosophy that is specific to the club as a whole, do you consider that a player at youth level is the same as a professional player?
CMN: "My mentality as a coach has always been as follows: it doesn't matter whether you're young or more experienced when you go to a training session, when you go out on the pitch, what you want is to do your best.
"That doesn't mean that the mission will be accomplished, but at least you have to try. I always tell my players that, if they want to, we can fight for what we really want from the bottom of our hearts.
"The problem comes when someone doesn't want to - that's the key. I don't see much difference between the youngsters and the first team. I think a player has to train to keep learning and to be competitive.
"That's the reality for all first-team teams. After that, there are bound to be differences depending on the clubs and their status. Also, the treatment of a youngster cannot be the same as that of an adult.
"The problems of a 14-year-old child are not the same as those of a 25-year-old adult. It's not the same to have a professional contract as not to have one.
"There are a thousand things that come into play, but in the end, these are people who have the same objective, which is to progress. I don't think there's much difference in the way training is experienced in professional football or in youth football. At least that's the way I see it."
FS: When you were still at Barca, a certain Ousmane Dembele arrived, who is perhaps one of the most in-form players at the moment. What are the differences between then and now?
CMN: "Football is all about confidence. We can work on tactics, we can try a thousand things, a thousand variations, but at the end of the day, when a player is confident, when a player is happy, when a player is at his best, everything goes more smoothly.
"The pass you want to put between the lines, it goes through. The shot you want to put into the top corner, it goes in.
"When you're a little more negative, doubt can creep in and you make a move a second late and so on. Dembele has always struck me as an exceptional player. It's true that he's scoring goals now, but before, his game allowed him to create a lot of space for others.
"Today, he creates the same thing and scores too. When a player plays like that, it's very difficult to stop him."
FS: You've come up against Kylian Mbappe on several occasions, what problems does a player like that pose for a coach? How can you prepare your team to stop him, or at least contain him?
CMN: "At every match, we analyse our opponents, we analyse what we might encounter as a problem and when you play players like that, as you said, with Dembele today, or last year, with Kylian, the players know them, they know what they can do and must try to avoid it. But the talent is still enormous.
"You have to be very focused, you always have to be involved, you have to try and counter their qualities. Mbappe was a player who could sometimes give the impression that he wasn't there and then suddenly appear with a shot or in an action and score a goal.
"It's sometimes difficult to control because there are players who need to play to provoke a lot, but not Mbappe. If we all knew how to stop them, they probably wouldn't be among the best players in the world."
FS: How do you see the development of Cristian Casseres, who is already in his second season at Toulouse?
CMN: "I'm very pleased. I feel that he's growing, that he's getting better every day, that he's feeling better, that he's more and more confident and, what's more, he can perform much better.
"I'm very happy with the way he's adapted. He comes from another league, MLS, where the way of playing football is different. He's a player who gives everything on the pitch and his commitment is always there. He may play better or worse, but he's always competitive."
FS: And the last question concerns another of your players, the Englishman Charlie Cresswell. Do you think he could become a permanent fixture in the England team?
CMN: "We're working towards that. He's currently with the U21s, we've signed him, he's from Leeds, he's playing a lot, he's progressing, he wants more...
"As I said, the most important thing is to want to improve, to want to grow. If he's called up to the U21s, he could make it into the first team! Every time someone is called up to the senior team, it's a source of pride, because it means we've done something right, and above all, because the player is happy, and that's the most important thing."