Panathinaikos is looking to clear the final hurdle before the Conference League’s group stage; on Thursday night (August 20 – 9:30 p.m.) will face Hradec Králové from the Czech Republic at OAKA in their first match against each other in the playoffs of Europe’s third-tier club competition.
Ahead of the match, the coach of the “clover,” Jacob Nystrup, spoke at the customary press conference, during which he stated that his clear goal is to build a team that consistently plays good soccer, while, as he emphasized, the most important thing for Panathinaikos at this time is to secure qualification.
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Here’s what he said in detail
A match against an unknown opponent—what Panathinaikos needs to focus on to secure a qualifying result: “First and foremost, the most important thing is to play at a high level for a longer period of time. Just as we did after the first thirty minutes in Sofia. We need to play with more confidence than we did. When you’re on a team like Panathinaikos, you have to have a winning mentality. We need to be stronger on the field, but at the same time, we must respect our opponents. They played two very good games against Besiktas. We have two matches to secure qualification, and that’s the big goal for all of us.”
Panathinaikos hasn’t won a home game in the qualifiers yet—is there an explanation for that? “It’s just a coincidence; if you look at the stats, we could have won at home as well. Away against Paksi, we could have won by an even bigger margin, and then we were nervous at home. Against CSKA 1948, after the first goal, I thought we’d score a second one right away and win the match, but then we didn’t play well. I hope we’ll get our first home win of the season tomorrow. It’s a two-game series, and qualification will be decided over those two matches, but I definitely want us to get the win tomorrow. A win tomorrow would be wonderful.”
On the decision to start Kamara and Tsirivegia in the midfield and whether it’s an adjustment to the opponent. What are the reasons for selecting them? “It’s not certain that they’ll play tomorrow either. We have very good players in the midfield. Kontouris is working very well, very hard, and I know he had some great games yesterday. Cerin is in his fifth season with the team; he’s loyal, and we count on him completely. We’ll also have Kangu after the qualifiers. That means a player who’s in the lineup today might be on the bench next week. When you’re at Panathinaikos, you need to have good players on the bench—that’s just how it is. We have good depth on the team, and I’m satisfied with that.”
How far does Panathinaikos’ performance in the qualifiers fall short of what Nistrup wants to see midway through and later in the season: “I don’t have dreams; I have clear goals. I want—and hope—that we’ll play much better. A consistent team that will play well all the time. As I’ve said from day one, I’m here to get results right away, with a very young team. We haven’t been together long, but I believe we’re improving and will improve even more. We may not be playing perfectly, nor will we play perfectly in two weeks, but right now we want results—that’s what matters.”
