Football expert Alexander Sopko commented on the defeat of Dnipro-1 from the Dutch AZ (0:1) in yesterday's match of the 1st round of the group stage of the Conference League.
Alexander Sopko (photo: V. Peregnyak)“The result of the match is natural. AZ, although not a top team, but at the same time, somewhere close to the leaders - organized, skillful, well trained tactically. They play systemic, organized football, which looks boring, academic, but with such teams as Dnepr-1 it brings results, because if you make a mistake 1-2 times, they will definitely punish you.
Everything just solved small nuances and mistakes. The Dnipros allowed them, the Dutch did not. There could have been a draw, but for this, the Dnipros needed to show a little more composure and organization. Somewhere, readiness, apparently, was not enough, because the fact that the defender had convulsions in the 75th minute suggests that Dnipro-1 is not ideally ready for games of such a level, such tension. Although there wasn’t much of it, especially against the backdrop of the game between Fenerbahce and Dynamo, where everything sparkled.
Dnipro-1 tries to play in an organized manner, to control the ball, there were good moments in the first half. Although Dnipro are leading in the UPL, they are still at the beginning of team building. When the new invited players get in shape, play, gain some confidence, they will definitely add to the game. They are still raw and unpredictable. But there is a perspective,” Sopko said.
