It also went without a captain and with a reshuffle in defense: “I offered the opportunity to someone who is on a good streak and is bursting with confidence”
Photo: Luka Vovk / Sportida
Slovenia against Austria did not shine, but it must be noted that the draw, which is undoubtedly a positive result considering everything, was achieved without their captain, without a legend, without one of the best of all time. Jan Oblak was not in a condition to help his national team this time, but Slovenia held on even without the help of the star Atletico from Madrid. In his big national team shoes stepped Matevž Vidovšek and once again proved that Slovenia has a goalkeeper in him who can adequately replace the Škofja Loka octopus without the slightest doubt.
But Oblak’s absence was not the only change in defense, which operated like an impenetrable steel wall at Euro 2024. Žan Karničnik was also missing, and Matjaž Kek responded in a very interesting, not exactly expected way. He placed central defender David Brekal on the right side of the defense.
“I have mentioned a few times that this is not a one-player team. I was in the stands, and it seemed to me that the situation with Matevž Vidovšek and David Brekal was working. I have complete confidence in these players. When I spoke with captain Jan Oblak in the afternoon before the match, he told me that he simply wasn’t 100 percent. Therefore, I offered the opportunity to someone who is in a good run of matches and is bursting with confidence,” Matjaž Kek explained why the goalkeeper from Olimpija stepped in goal, while regarding defender Orlando, he honestly admitted: “In the second half, it became clear that this is not David Brekal’s playing position. However, I do not want to return Petar Stojanović to the right side of the defense because we are too dependent on him in attack.”
More than with the defensive play, Matjaž Kek was ‘dissatisfied’ with something else in Stožice and made it clear after the match: “We trained four times. It quickly shows who is the first to get things going in training… You cannot change the system in three joint practices. However, against Austria, with such a strong midfield, it is clearly visible that with only two classic midfielders, we are suffering. Against such a team, perhaps the attackers should help even more in the defensive phase. Their last midfielder was isolated the whole time. No, I was not satisfied with some players, but we will discuss this in the locker room.“
This text was automatically translated using AI.
Author: editorial Football Planet
National Team
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