"The result was very disappointing for us. We faced a strong opponent and couldn’t show the game we wanted".
According to AZERTAC, this was stated by Imran Fetai, a player of North Macedonia’s Shkendija, after his team was eliminated from the UEFA Champions League third qualifying round with a 1:6 aggregate loss to Qarabag, Idman.biz reports.
Fetai explained that in the second leg in Baku (5:1), several defensive mistakes allowed the Azerbaijani champions to create scoring opportunities easily: "From the start of the match, we felt the pressure. Qarabag built very fast and technical attacks, and it was difficult to stop them. In the first half, we couldn’t take control of the game, and this affected the match’s outcome. In attack, we weren’t as effective as we wanted, and we couldn’t convert our chances. At times, we played without coordination as a team. We should have been more aggressive and attentive on the pitch. Our fans expected a better result from us, but it didn’t work out this time."
The defender added that the match was a valuable experience for both him and the team: "We will learn from our mistakes. In future games, we will try not to repeat them. I hope that in upcoming matches, both my performance and the team’s performance will improve."
Qarabag will face Hungary’s Ferencvaros in the play-off round.
Idman.biz
