Koubek angry with the players for the third goal
Cyprian Larnaca finished off Czech Boleslav by three goals, and the press conference immediately after the match saw great difference in the mood of both the coaches. Kaanen of Larnaca radiated happiness, Koubek of Mladá Boleslav was devastated by the unexpected debacle.
It was the worst defeat for Boleslav ever on the European scene. They lost in Turkey in the preliminary round of the Champions League in 2006 to Galatasaray Istanbul by three goals, but they scored twice, losing only after fierce fight 2:5. This year in Larnaca they did not score once, and the cruel defeat 0:3 can be translated as almost zero chance to go further.
"The result is very inconvenient. I am disappointed. And we lost key player Neuwirth. We succeeded to cover the offensive combinations of our rival in the first half. But I was unpleasantly surprised in the midfield by the way we were losing balls and hopeful positions," said Miroslav Koubek.
To what extent can we blame the heat?
"I don't think it was the heat that beat us. We began the second half with ore stamina than the first one, and the opening minutes seemed to take us where we needed to be. We were close to take a lead when Kúdela hit the post, but the breakpoint was the penalty kick that in fact was no penalty kick."
Can you see any hope in the rematch?
"Our position was still good when it was nil-nil. I am angry with the players for letting the rival score for the third time in the added minute." The coach Miroslav Koubek did not shy from the fact that the third ball in Boleslav's net was a deadly blow to the team's ambition and belief in going further.
On the contrary Dutch coach of Larnaca Ton Kaanen was excited: "I am very happy we won, scored three goals and finished with clean plate. Spectators in the audience and in front of their TV sets saw an interesting game. It was quite balanced, both the teams played well, but we were the lucky ones and won. I'm sure next week in Mladá Boleslav the match will be a close contest again."
When Cyprian journalists asked Ton Kaanen to comment on the advancement chances of his team, he diplomatically avoided any statements even hinting at AEK Larnaca being more than one foot in the European League play off, and he left having declared the match in Mladá Boleslav will be something completely different from the island's experience.
The words of the third goal's shooter, left fullback De Cler showed joy and self-confidence: "There is the match in Mladá Boleslav ahead of us, and this is no easy opponent; the entire team will get ready very carefully to make sure we win again."
