Idman.biz
An interview with Arif Asadov, the former coach of the Azerbaijani national team, on futbolinfo.az
– Our national team drew goalless with Latvia in the last test matches, and lost 1:2 to Hungary. First, could you share your opinion about the match with Latvia…
– It was obvious that Fernando Santos was thinking more about the opponents in the qualifying round and fielded the players with that game system in mind. Although not completely, he was thinking about the optimal squad by 70-80 percent. As for the game, we didn't play aggressively. It was just a tactical move that was visible. Our team focused on defending, acting like "number two". We also had scoring opportunities, but we couldn't take advantage of them. I wouldn't say we played badly or well, just that there was a little lack of confidence in our national team. However, considering Latvia's strength, it would have been possible to go out against them with a different game system and win.
– In the second game, we faced Hungary and lost to the Hungarians again. How did the national team impress in this match?
– The right game system was chosen in this match. Since Hungary is a team at the level of our opponents in the qualifying round, we played with "number two", and some changes were made in the squad. Renat Dadashov playing with Mahir Emreli also increased our attacking potential, and the ball stayed in our attacking line. In the overall game plan, we seemed willing, and there was also aggression. Of course, since the opponent's skill level was superior to ours, they dictated the game, and there were many scoring opportunities. But our national team also attacked from time to time, and we scored a goal. They could have even equalized the score at the end of the match. Comparing the two games, the team seemed more confident in the match with the Hungarians. Maybe this was due to playing at home, in front of our fans. However, the lack of victory still shows a lack of confidence in the team.
– There is no victory in 10 games under the leadership of Fernando Santos. How do you assess this?
– This shows that Santos has not yet been able to unlock the full potential of our players. I think our players like to attack more. We saw this in the game with Hungary. Towards the end of the match, he made changes in the system and put more attacking players on the field, and after that, there was a sense of revival in our national team's game, and we also created scoring opportunities. The lack of victory in 10 games can negatively affect our games in the qualifying round.
– In the qualifying round, we have games against France, Ukraine, and Iceland. With this trend, can we face a fiasco in the cycle games?
– I don't think there can be a fiasco. There is still time. We believe that our players will be in good shape at that time. Now it was the end of the season, psychological fatigue is affecting. Everything can change in the qualifying round games. We are capable of taking points from the teams in this group. Our team has proven this in previous years. These players have defeated Sweden and Slovakia. There is just a little bit of a lack of confidence, it needs to be removed.
Idman.biz
