Damir Krznar shared his thoughts ahead of the match with the Slovak champions: “Slovan is a higher quality opponent, but Olimpija has shown that they can compete with them”
Photo: Urban Lesjak
The players of Celje, after a fortunate outcome in the opening match of the national championship against Brav, are facing perhaps their toughest opponent of the season tomorrow. Slovan from Bratislava is the undisputed ruler of Slovak football, something that is also acknowledged in the principality, especially by head coach Damir Krznar and the defensive pillar of the Counts Damjan Vuklišević, who took some time during preparations for tomorrow’s match to speak with journalists.
“Just like against Flora, we view the first match only as the first half. Slovan is a much higher quality opponent. They are extremely dangerous in the attacking phase, have a lot of quality on the wings, and an excellent forward. What we like to do—play high and apply pressure—will be risky, as they have a lot of speed to exploit the space behind us. We will need to be smart in defense and rely on the help of the midfielders in this phase of the game. To succeed, we will need to play the game of the season and give our utmost. Slovan is the favorite; we are not, which speaks volumes about the power dynamics. Both teams like to have the ball at their feet. We’ll see who will be more successful in that. Olimpija has shown that they can play against them, but it’s true that Slovan has changed their team a bit. We have three opportunities to qualify for Europe, and the easiest way is—and this is what we want—to make use of the first one,” said the Croatian expert, who has experience playing in Europe from his time on the bench of Dinamo Zagreb.
“We expect a very difficult match. We know who will be opposing us and where the danger lies. The front line, which includes several Slovak internationals, is their strongest weapon. Overall, Slovan has much more individual quality than Flora. We respect every opponent, but we need to approach the game without fear and show our best. A lot is at stake; we need to be better than the opponent in both matches. We are aware that if we succeed, we are already in the group stage of the European competition, which is a huge motivation, but we are taking it step by step,” added Vuklišević, who shares similar thoughts with his coach.
This text was automatically translated using AI.
Author: editorial Football Planet
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