“AFFA’s decision to part ways with Fernando Santos was the right move.”
These words were spoken to AZERTAC by Aftandil Hajiyev, Chief Coordinator of the Qarabag Football Academy, Idman.biz reports.
The expert commented on Fernando Santos’ resignation as head coach of the Azerbaijan national team: “It is well known that this decision was not made overnight. Under the Portuguese specialist, our national team could not achieve results, there were no victories. In recent games, it was noticeable that the players’ national spirit and motivation had declined. The team seemed to approach matches without confidence. Therefore, the decision was not unexpected for me.”
He added that under the temporary head coach Aykhan Abbasov, positive changes are expected in the team’s performance: “Aykhan Abbasov is a young and motivated specialist. I believe that under his leadership, the players’ national spirit will return, even if just for one game. We did not start the World Cup qualifying stage with a positive mindset. The 0:5 defeat to Iceland, considered one of the weakest teams in the group, was not good. Then, the head coach’s resignation before the match against Ukraine was also unfortunate. But I hope that from today’s match, we can at least earn 1 point, because we have managed to gain points against similar-level teams in previous encounters.”
Hajiyev emphasized that the psychological state of the team is the most important factor at this stage: “Instilling confidence in the players and maintaining unity is very important. Otherwise, undesirable results may continue. I hope this change will mark a new beginning for the national team.”
The Azerbaijan vs. Ukraine match at the Tofiq Bahramov Republican Stadium will kick off at 20:00 today.
Idman.biz
