Martines reveals key factor in victory over Uzbekistan

Portugal national team head coach Roberto Martines shared his thoughts on the convincing 5-0 victory against Uzbekistan.

The Spanish specialist emphasized that the most important aspect for the team in this match was emotional control and adhering to the established game plan.

«I believe the key factor in this game was the ability to manage emotions. In the first match, after scoring, we lost our plan, discipline, and positional order», said Martines.

The coach stated that in the match against Uzbekistan, the Portugal players understood from the first minutes how to act and correctly implemented the tactical plan before halftime.

«This time the situation was different. We acted with a clear understanding of how we needed to play until the break. The five players who came on as substitutes also maintained a high level of tactical discipline. This was decisive», he noted.

Martines also mentioned that the second goal gave Portugal a psychological advantage, and Uzbekistan's disallowed goal influenced the game's scenario.

«The second goal helped us a lot. Also, the fact that Uzbekistan's goal was not counted affected the picture of the game. In another match, such a goal would have been counted and changed the entire course of the encounter», the coach said.

The Portugal head coach expressed satisfaction that his team quickly drew the right conclusions from the mistakes made in the previous match.

«Overall, I am very happy. Because we quickly analyzed our mistakes from the first game and managed not to repeat them», Martines added.

Following the victory over Uzbekistan, the Portugal national team increased their points to 4. Uzbekistan, yet to score a point, remains in fourth and last place in the group table.