Roberto Martinez paid tribute to Matjaž Kek: “Slovenia operates almost like a club. National teams are usually not so synchronized”
Photo: Nogometna zveza Portugalske
Everything but a victory for Portugal would be a surprise, many believe, but Roberto Martinez ahead of Tuesday’s evening match at Stožice Stadium emphasizes that Slovenia is by no means an opponent to be taken lightly. Furthermore, the Spaniard, who is on a run of 11 consecutive wins with Portugal, was full of praise for his counterpart Matjaž Kek at the press conference in Ljubljana.
“I have great respect for what the coach has done with Slovenia. Mr. Kek has given the team a clear structure; Slovenia operates almost like a club. National teams usually aren’t so synchronized. Slovenia presses as a team, defends very well, has a good understanding at the back, and up front, two forwards combine well. We need to continue building defensive concepts; we need to defend Benjamin Šeško and Andraž Šporar well, as well as Peter Stojanović, who has a significant influence on the game. We expect an organized Slovenia; it will be difficult to break them down, so this will be a good practice for the aspects of our game that we still want to improve,” Roberto Martinez made it clear that he has done his homework and doesn’t take games against Slovenia lightly.
Martinez: “One of the better teams”
Continuing, the 50-year-old former coach of Swansea City, Wigan, and Everton, who has also coached Belgium as a manager, explained why Portugal chose Slovenia for a friendly match: “We went away from home to further test how we can impose our game on the opponent. Slovenia showed excellent play against Denmark, Finland, and Northern Ireland. The atmosphere here is also something we need to overcome. We need to beat one of the better teams when it comes to playing with two forwards. They also threaten on the counter-attack. We need to work on many concepts. Above all, the feeling of confidence and belief is essential, which you get when you qualify for the European Championship, as Slovenia has done. You play with those feelings. This will be a good test for us.”
And what about Cristiano Ronaldo? “Everything he has achieved in his career, he has achieved because he wants to give his all every time he laces up his boots. That’s why he’s a role model for young players. When he’s in the locker room, he sets an example. We have a mixture of generations in the team; there are even two players born in 2004 when Ronaldo and Pepe were already playing in their first tournament. That says a lot about this team. We share experiences across generations, which will make us better in the future.“
This text was automatically translated using AI.
Author: editorial Football Planet
National Team
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