"I congratulate my players. There was some tension and fatigue. Nevertheless, the players remained calm until the end and hid the opponent's mistakes. In the end, we were able to take advantage of it. I wish Elmar Bakhshiyev and his team success."
QOL.az reports that these words were said by Gurban Gurbanov, the head coach of "Qarabağ", at the press conference held after the return match of the semi-final of the Azerbaijan Cup with "Araz-Nakhchivan".
"Qarabağ" defeated their opponent, whom they lost to in the first match (0:1), with 3 unanswered goals today and advanced to the final. The coach of the Aghdam club commented on the victory as follows: "First of all, it is necessary to evaluate the opponent's game. We were behind 0:1 in the score. The opponent defended very correctly, intelligently and prepared for counterattacks. They had several goal episodes in the first half. Our preparation was based on this. They put very good pressure on our players without the ball. We had a lot of ball losses in the first half. The opponent was more active. In the second half, we increased the pressure and used it. I have always said that cup matches are different from the championship. This is normal. We must always be ready for such games."
Q. Gurbanov stated that it does not matter which team ("Neftchi" or "Sabah") they will face in the final: "I don't have such a thought. I just know that in the final we will face an opponent who is burning with desire for the result. Because the chance of both of them participating in European cups will depend on that game. Any opponent will then build all their preparations against us. There is still time. I wish both teams success. I would like both of them to participate in European cups. Both clubs have invested heavily. We can show the structure of these two clubs as an example. They have invested not only in the result, but also in the sustainability of success. Both "Neftchi" and "Sabah" have a very good base. We also want to win the cup again. We will not have a thought of losing in the final. I would like my players to have even more titles."