After the 16th round match of the Super League between “Andijon” and “Kokand-1912”, the home team's head coach Maksim Shatskikh spoke with journalists, reported championat.asia.
The specialist admitted that the first half did not go as planned, although he liked the first 15 minutes.
— The first half did not fully go according to our planned scenario. However, I liked the first 15 minutes. We can say that the tactics agreed upon before the game began to work. But then the team started to play deeper. It was clear that the players were under emotional pressure. A large crowd had gathered, which made the players nervous. During the break, we analyzed the flaws and tried to correct certain aspects.
About the second half, Shatskikh emphasized that his team played just as he wanted:
— A completely different team came out after the break. We assigned our players a clear task — to score. That changed the whole course of the match. I want to particularly praise my players for the second half. They increased the pace, moved the ball faster. As a result, all of our second-half efforts paid off. Unfortunately, we didn’t expect the field to be in such a condition — we haven’t played here for a month. We wanted to show combinational football, but it didn’t always work.
During the press conference, Shatskikh also commented on the new players, the goalkeeper’s performance, and injury updates:
— I’m satisfied with today’s match. Five new players started the game. They recently joined the team, but their overall level is good. There were no issues with mutual understanding. We’ll continue improving from match to match.
On the condition of Shahzod Azmiddinov and others:
— Azmiddinov is fine, he has no serious injury. He came from “Pakhtakor,” where training routines are different. So he joined us with a different preparation. He had also spent a long time with the youth team. It’s hard for young players to train with full intensity, so it’s challenging for him. Sunnatillo Hamidjonov also missed many sessions. Ismail Akinade had a long break from football and trained individually. We will integrate them gradually. By the time of the ACL matches, we’ll be in top shape.
On the goalkeeper:
— He played brilliantly today. His actions in key episodes were excellent.
On AbduMannonov and AbduMannopov:
— There’s no restriction for switching positions. They can decide for themselves. We give them freedom in such matters. If the opponent’s defender gets used to one player, switching positions will make it harder for them. It’s their call — no instructions needed from us.
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