Trpišovský on the 0-2 loss in Baku: Slavia Prague fell short

Slavia Prague coach Jindřich Trpišovský admitted after the 0-2 Champions League defeat to Azerbaijan’s Sabah that the team disappointed both in result and in performance. In his words, the first half was especially weak, even though the team went into the dressing room at 0-0.

Mistakes and missed chances

The coach sees the main reason for the failure in mistakes: “We conceded both goals in a silly, cheap way, especially the first. We don’t concede goals like that.” On top of that, the team failed to convert a good number of chances. Individual quality was lacking in some positions, and early in the match Slavia lost the ball too often and could not build any pressure.

Apart from a goal disallowed for offside, the opponent had nothing in the first half, but then Sabah went ahead and closed up smartly. Slavia’s attacks came mostly down the left flank, with little on the right, and in midfield the opponent outplayed the Czech club. Trpišovský stressed that the players gave everything, but he cannot name anyone who reached their ceiling.

He congratulated the opponent on a quality performance, but added that this is a team Slavia should beat. In the box, he said, nervousness and haste build up: Provod, who could have put the team back in the game, hit the goalkeeper, Mubarak’s situations were poorly resolved, and in a two-on-one Slavia shot from 25 metres.

The favourites’ role does not suit them

The coach did not explain whether the expectation of beating Sabah weighed on the team, but admitted: the role of favourites does not suit Slavia. Against Lens, Barcelona and similar opponents, the Czech side play with more life and make decisions faster. Trpišovský is disappointed that the players paid more attention to preparation than usual but did not show it on the pitch. “We want to win, but the reality is that we are far from it,” he said.

The team will have to pull themselves together as early as Saturday: Slavia play Hradec Králové. Trpišovský is confident that after disappointments the team know how to respond quickly, and the performance should be better both emotionally and in energy.

Around Prague, based on reporting by sport.cz