Omonia defeated Karmiotissa 3-0 at the “Stelios Kyriakides” Stadium in a match for the 5th round of the Cyprus League by Stoiximan.
Called upon to replace the suspended Henning Berg, Héctor González spoke about the importance of the victory, but above all about his players’ performance after a three-week hiatus.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
For his part, Alexis Garpozis acknowledged the superiority of the “Greens,” emphasizing that the better team won.
Here are their statements in detail:
Alexis Garpozis (Karmiotissa): “I believe the better team won today. We prepared the players for the fact that we would struggle today, and they were mentally very well prepared and showed it. We were playing against a team that maintains possession in every game, around 65%. Today, I think it was around 70%. If we exclude the first ten minutes, when we weren’t playing well at all—not even defensively— after that, I think we found our footing and handled Omonia very well in our defensive third, just as we’d planned. We weren’t good at all with the ball at our feet; we couldn’t keep possession at all, and that’s why we struggled. I believe that after the 60th minute, when we tried to change the team’s approach a bit in terms of ball possession and move a little out of our defensive third, in the very first play after the substitutions—not directly, but indirectly from a set piece—we conceded the first goal. We tried to bring in more attacking players afterward, and toward the end, I think we faltered. To be fair, the score could have been even higher if Omonia had scored earlier. We’ll build on the solid defensive performance we showed today, and we’ll work on our attacking play and ball control, because we have upcoming matches where we need to pick up points. I’m pleased with the players’ effort once again, but there are things we need to improve significantly. There are reasons—we know them, we’re working on them—it’s a marathon, and the team will remain competitive until the very end. Once again, congratulations to Omonia on their well-deserved victory.”
The team showed in yet another game that it can give teams with higher aspirations a run for their money. You said that certain things need work. Is it the finishing of our chances? In other words, offensively, do you think the team is missing something? “Today it wasn’t about finishing our chances, because I don’t think we created almost any problems for Omonia. There were certain situations, certain “opportunities”—though I wouldn’t call them opportunities—and I’m absolutely justified in saying that. These are players who aren’t ready yet; we had injured players, and we have players we’re waiting for. I never dwell on player absences, even though we had some very significant ones today. These are young players who haven’t yet found their rhythm in this league and in these kinds of matches. We’re working very hard on it; we’re on the right track, but it’s not yet what we expect or what we want.”
Héctor González (Omonia): “I believe that what matters most isn’t just the win, but the team’s performance, especially after this long break with so many players away on national team duty. This is the first time we’ve had these three weeks to prepare for the game, so we played well. We knew it would be difficult; we knew what we were up against today. I think we played very well; we controlled the game from the start, we had some chances, and even though we didn’t score early on, we were in control for 45 minutes and the players were fresh. In the second half, we came out with positive energy and the right mindset; we scored from set pieces, second balls, and open play; we controlled the match, and everyone is healthy. It was a very good performance, and, as I said, it wasn’t easy because Karmiotissa is a good team that doesn’t concede goals easily and is dangerous on the counterattack and on set pieces. We had some issues with second balls when they played long passes in the first half, and a few avoidable fouls created opportunities for them. But once we got that under control, we focused on the second balls, stayed calm with the ball at our feet, and found the right rhythm, so it was a very good game.”
If you had to pick one key moment, what would it be? Your team’s patience throughout the game, or the moment the first goal came? “To be fair, we’ve been preparing for this game for two weeks now, so we knew we were facing a team that’s very strong defensively. That 5-4-1 formation they play isn’t easy to break down. So we tried to put a little more pressure on the midfield, to be patient, but also to focus on breaking through by capitalizing on our quality, especially in the midfield and the attacking third, with the option to cut in from the wings as well. We had a few chances early on but didn’t score; we had 2–3 clear chances in the first half. And once again, set pieces were crucial for us. I believe the coaching staff planned the game and analyzed the opponent very effectively, so the players knew exactly what they had to do. We had players returning from national team duty, but most of them are familiar with the coach’s philosophy. I believe that one of the keys—when it comes to patience in our game—is also the way the coach conveys information and the game plan. It’s very easy when you have quality players to understand what the coach wants, both offensively and defensively. Today’s game was a very good example of how, when you prepare for the game and do your “job,” everything goes in the right direction.”
