"We were under pressure in the second half. We had a lot of young players on the field and couldn’t control the game the way we wanted. However, the opponent didn’t have any real chances either."
Idman.biz, citing Teleqraf, reports that this was stated by Croatian club Hajduk's head coach Gonzalo Garcia at the post-match press conference following their 2-1 extra-time win over Zira in the second leg of the UEFA Conference League second qualifying round.
The 42-year-old coach said the Azerbaijani side has very good players: "They are physically strong. We were losing almost all one-on-one duels. Yes, Marko Livaja had a lot of space in certain situations, but we weren't good in decisive passes and crosses. Due to our absences, we were under pressure on the field. We had to pull ourselves together; otherwise, it would have been bad. We needed to finish the game earlier. We knew it would be tough, but I didn’t expect the match to be this intense. At times, I was really angry."
According to Garcia, after regular time, the players were exhausted and stressed: "Of course, it was difficult. Poljud Stadium is incredible, but people expect a lot. Young players feel that. During the break, I told my players we were approaching certain moments well, and the fans appreciate it when they see something on the pitch. I told them we needed to be patient and that scoring chances would come. At times we were good. But we need to improve a lot. I told my players they don’t always have to feel the pressure to win. We will control the situation on the field. The team isn’t fully formed yet. If we want to be competitive, we need to get stronger."
Zira drew 1-1 with Hajduk in the first leg in Baku. Since the return leg also ended with the same score, extra time was played.
Idman.biz
