Former Azerbaijan international Aslan Karimov believes Sabah's late defensive problems against TNS in the UEFA Champions League were the result of psychology rather than flaws in the team's back line.
As reported by İdman.Biz, the football expert shared his assessment after the Azerbaijani champions defeated Welsh side TNS 2-0 away from home to complete a 4-1 aggregate victory and advance to the second qualifying round.
Although Sabah won both matches of the tie, the closing stages of the second leg raised some questions after the Welsh champions created several dangerous opportunities.
Karimov believes the scoreline played a decisive role in the team's mentality.
"First of all, you have to consider the score. When you're four goals ahead on aggregate with only a few minutes left, it's natural for players to become more relaxed. They lower their concentration, while the opponent has nothing to lose, commits more players forward and starts pressing aggressively.
"The coaching staff should prepare the team to maintain the same level of focus until the final whistle regardless of the score. But I was a player myself, so I understand these situations. When you know the opponent is no longer capable of changing the outcome, a certain level of comfort inevitably appears within the team," Karimov said.
He also rejected suggestions that the late moments exposed defensive weaknesses.
"I wouldn't describe this as a problem with Sabah's defense. We've already seen in the Azerbaijan championship how confidently Sabah defended against strong opponents such as Qarabag," he added.
Sabah eliminated TNS 4-1 on aggregate in the first qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League and will now face Finnish champions KuPS for a place in the next stage of the competition.
