We wanted to advance from the group
Thursday, November 25, 2021
|
Shakhtar U19 head coach Oskar Ratulutra commented on the defeat at Inter and summed up his side’s European campaign
- What did you say to the guys in the dressing room after losing to Inter?
- We thanked them and explained that in order to progress, we also need to lose. This defeat should unite us and only make us stronger. We are moving on. We’ll have a match against Inhulets now, so our objective is to recover and prepare for it.
- How much did the early goal complicate the game?
- There was a number of consecutive personal errors. I want to repeat that development should include some mistakes, the main thing is to draw the right conclusions.
- What can you say about the pitch? Is it difficult to control the ball on that kind of surface?
- The field was hard, but we were on an equal footing with our opponents. Inter are an athletic, physically strong team, while we tried to show our game through short and medium passes. We lost in this match, but we are proud that even in such conditions we tried to showcase our own game.
- Shakhtar lost their chance of advancing to the knockout phase. How will you set your team up for the encounter with Sheriff U19 and the rest of this year’s fixtures?
- Games in the UEFA Youth League gave us invaluable experience, they will be remembered for a lifetime. The footballers understand that, so the match against Sheriff will not pass without passions. Everyone strives to participate in this tournament from young age, and approaching the game that doesn’t decide anything without any desire is wrong. I'm sure no one has such thoughts.
- What do you make of this European campaign for Shakhtar U19?
- Someone did better, and someone else expected more from themselves. In general, it was clear that the guys were playing football and were trying to fulfil on the pitch the set pieces that we were offering them. The trend is positive, but we need time. Well, we wanted to advance from the group, but, unfortunately, we did not succeed in fulfilling the set task. We have a domestic league, so we will try to win every match and achieve our goals.