Blue-and-yellows coach dissatisfied with defense in match with Albania
Head coach Ukrainian national team Sergey Rebrov was dissatisfied with the team’s performance in the match with Albania (1:2) in the first round Nations League 2024/25In particular, the coach criticized the defensive actions.
“Why such a pale performance in the first half? Probably because we played against a very strong opponent. The Albanians defended competently and in an organized manner, it was difficult to find space. We tried to make passes into the penalty area, but unfortunately, we did not create many chances in the first half. Yes, Roman Yaremchuk had a chance. In the second half, we had chances, we scored a goal, we could have scored more. Unfortunately, in football at this level, if you do not score, then they score against you.”
“It’s always difficult to play at this level. Albania defended very tightly, didn’t give any space at all. It’s very difficult to open up such a defense, to have patience. We tried to do it, but there was not enough sharpness in the penalty area.”
“This is the problem we had in our game with Romania – we controlled the ball, but did not create chances, did not load the penalty area. Albania, like Euro, defended very well. However, now the question is not even about our attack, but about defense: how can we concede two goals out of three counterattacks? There was no balance in defense, the whole team had to defend in the second half, not allow such chances to be created.”
“We gave some hints. In the first 15 minutes of the second half we dominated, created chances, scored a goal. But, as I said, football is not only attack, but also defense. Our second goal we conceded… I watched it again now and I don’t understand how you can defend at that level. We stepped it up at the beginning of the second half, scored a goal, but we have to play 90 minutes.”
“We need to work and concentrate on our role in the team every minute of the game. We have two days to recover now. It is important for the players to understand that this is the first match, anything can happen. The Czech Republic lost today – 1:4. But we must think about ourselves, show a different game in defense. This is important for the future, not only for the next match. But now there is little time, we need to react quickly.”
In the match with Albania, the blue-yellows created almost no chances in the first half. Ukraine managed to open the scoring after the break, Efim Konoplya scored. However, the Albanians quickly recouped, and then scored the second goal after a counterattack.
With three points, Albania leads Group B1 with Georgia, while the Ukrainian team is third thanks to a better goal difference than the Czech Republic.
In the next round, Rebrov’s team will play the Czech Republic on September 10. Like the match with the Albanians, the match will take place in Prague at the same stadium.
Source: Sportarena
I’m Scott Moore, a professional writer and journalist based in the US. I’ve been writing for various publications for over 8 years now, and have been working as an author at athletistic for the past five years. My work has been featured by some of the leading sports websites and magazines across Europe.
