Arif Asadov comments on Sabah's defeat to Celje

"Even though Sabah couldn't reach the next stage, they showed themselves in a good light in two games." These words were said by Arif Asadov, the former coach of the Azerbaijani national team, in his statement to Sport24.az.

The experienced specialist shared his thoughts on the Baku representative's defeat to Slovenia's "Celje" team in the first qualifying round of the Europa League:

"We watched matches of equal level. Despite the fact that a difficult and experienced opponent was encountered. In the end, Celje's experience and Sabah's lack of full readiness influenced the result. After the defeat in the first match, there was nothing to lose. The team had to take risks. That's what happened. They started the match by putting pressure on the opponent. They achieved what they wanted and took the lead."

Arif Asadov also spoke about the main problems of the Azerbaijani club: "Sabah defended relatively well in the second match. But when they got the ball, they lost it quickly. Ball control was one of the main problems. They also took the lead in the score. The lack of high physical quality in extra time had its say. Because in both matches they conceded goals in the last minutes. This can be due to both fatigue and carelessness. But there were good matches. Sabah looked like a potential team. I think they will be able to qualify for the next stages in the Conference League. Transfers, the head coach's work speak for themselves. The substitutions made by the new coach added strength to the game. I think, even though they lost, they showed a decent game."

It should be noted that Sabah, who lost 2:3 in Baku, won with the same score in the main time on the road. Since extra time ended with a score of 3:3, the Baku team stopped fighting.