Defensive frailties curb Vrba's Czech enthusiasm
Monday, October 13, 2014
Article summary
Czech Republic coach Pavel Vrba admits he is still not satisfied, despite his side maintaining their 100% start to UEFA EURO 2016 qualifying with a 4-2 victory in Kazakhstan.
Article top media content
Article body
• Pavel Vrba disappointed after third game without Czech clean sheet
• Yuri Krasnozhan rues missed chances for Kazakhstan
• Both coaches agree the goal count could have been higher
• Czech Republic made it three wins from three in Group A with 4-2 win
• Next games: Turkey v Kazakhstan, Czech Republic v Iceland (16 November)
Pavel Vrba, Czech Republic coach
In the first half we were actually playing well but in the second, when the score went to 3-0, we started losing concentration – you saw the consequences of that. The score is a fair reflection of the match in my opinion. In the second half Kazakhstan upped their game and in the end both teams could have scored more.
After three matches we have nine points but I have to stress that it's still only the beginning of qualifying. I'm not really happy with our results because we keep conceding goals and failing to keep clean sheets. Kazakhstan are good going forward, though, and I really thought the No9 [Bauyrzhan Islamkhan] had a good game.
Yuri Krasnozhan, Kazakhstan coach
I have to stress real satisfaction about some of our attacking play, but we are really sad about conceding how we did – following ricochets or defensive mistakes around the penalty area. That is one thing; the positive thing is that we created chances – we haven't in recent times. Taking them is the big thing, though. If we had made the most of half of our opportunities we would not have lost.
Sergei Khizhnichenko, Kazakhstan forward
We made many individual mistakes. My lack of quality and poor finishing were the reason we did not get any points. Details are very important in football – we were second best when it came to those details. Am I happy we managed to score two goals against Petr Čech? I would have been happier if we had some points for it.
Yuri Logvinenko, Kazakhstan defender
We missed many opportunities and they punished us for our mistakes. We want to reach a new level but it is impossible without wins. I scored two goals tonight but it does not matter because we lost.
Petr Čech, Czech Republic goalkeeper
It was not an easy victory. Kazakhstan were tough opponents who fought until the final minute. We are really happy with the result and with all three games so far. We had hoped to have five to seven points at this stage but we have nine. It is really great.
