Motherwell manager Alfred Johansson expressed pride in his squad despite watching his side fall to a 3-1 defeat against German opponents Freiburg in the first leg of their UEFA Europa Conference League play-off tie at Fir Park.
Regan Charles-Cook gave the Scottish Premiership team a dream start by opening the scoring within two minutes, sparking hopes of an upset among the home supporters. However, a double from Matthias Ginter and a late header from substitute Keisuke Goto established a commanding two-goal cushion for the Bundesliga visitors ahead of next week's return leg.
Ginter struck on either side of the interval to turn the match in Freiburg's favour. His second goal arrived from the penalty spot after Motherwell defender Martin Moorman received a red card, leaving the hosts a man down from the 60th minute. Goto then sealed the victory for the visitors in the final seconds of the game.
"I'm very proud of them for the way they played," Johansson said after the match. "The mentality they showed throughout the game."
The Steelmen boss acknowledged that defensive set-pieces proved costly while managing the numerical disadvantage. "We learned the hard way in conceding set-pieces," Johansson said. "We spoke about that but also the fact we are not giving away a lot of big chances in this game in open play being a man down from minute 60."
He praised his team for sticking to their tactical game plan. "Together with the fact we have the goal in the first half and more sequences like that throughout the game where we stick to our principles - which was something I asked for before the game," Johansson added. "All these things make me very proud to be involved with them."
Learning against elite opposition
Motherwell compete in the top flight of Scottish football, while Freiburg represent Germany's Bundesliga. The Europa Conference League play-off stage determines which clubs advance to the main tournament's group phase.
Johansson stressed that competing against top-tier European opposition serves as an essential learning curve for his squad. "They can learn so much [against elite opposition]. When you train for something, whatever it is, then at some point you face a new level," Johansson said.
"When you do that you have to do everything a bit better," he continued. "Whether that's guitar, chess or playing football. You need to think faster, decide and execute technically faster with more quality. When you put the body into that you will adapt."
The Motherwell manager believes the experience will yield long-term benefits for his players. "That intensity and level of difficulty and level of actions which the players have done tonight, if you go on and do what we did then that intensity and quality sticks in your nervous system and will stay there," Johansson said. "As long as you know how that works then we will profit from it in the coming months."
Sticking to club identity
Although Johansson conceded that his team were ultimately beaten by the better side on the night, he was encouraged by their refusal to abandon their established style of play. "These players are recruited and made for playing the way we are playing," he said. "If we look at the first goal we score, we can agree when Motherwell look their best it's when we play like that."
Johansson noted where the match turned after his side took the lead. "The middle part of the first half after we scored is where we weren't doing that and that's when Freiburg gained momentum," Johansson explained. "They did that because they're so good but also because we became protective and didn't press as much prior to our goal."
"We need to be ourselves to have the best chance to get results," Johansson said. "That's the identity of this club and this team."
Freiburg manager response
Freiburg boss Julian Schuster conceded his side started slowly but commended Motherwell's positive approach. "Our goal was to start much better," Schuster said. "We gave Motherwell the belief to earn something today."
"It doesn't matter if they have little experience, it's positive to see how they want to play with the ball, with a lot of confidence," Schuster added. "This is one of the qualities this team have. It was tough for us to change the result but it was very positive for us going into the second game."
Motherwell will travel to Germany for the decisive second leg at the Europa-Park Stadion next Thursday, seeking to overturn the deficit.
