Moskal: Fans expect not only good play, but above all victory

Tuesday, September 17th, is the day of the long-overdue #ŁKSWIS match. The Krakow team traveled to Łódź on Monday, and coach Kazimierz Moskal met with journalists before leaving.

When asked if working on the mental aspect was important after two matches where ineffectiveness prevailed, the coach replied: "I would try to look at the bigger picture, I would try to look at how the match played out. Of course, it hurts us that in those two matches, in which we had a clear advantage, we only scored one goal, because we should have scored several in both. Of course, we talked about that last match, about how the fans were reacting. I said it's no surprise. The fans expect not only good performances, but above all, wins, especially when we play here in Krakow at Reymonta Street, but we have to do our job. That's the only way. Unless someone plans to retire or change clubs. However, if you're a professional athlete or footballer, the best medicine is another match, another challenge, and there you have to show that what you're doing makes sense and has to bring results."

Recently, Piotr Starzyński played the role of a youth player. Journalists suggested that the coach could choose Patryk Letkiewicz, solving the "problem" with filling this role: "The key question is whether Patryk is ready to play between the posts, because we also realize that playing in the third league or training with the first team is not the same as playing in front of 15,000 fans here at Reymonta. It would probably be easier for such a goalkeeper to make his debut away. Of course, we are thinking about it because it is the best solution for a team that needs a youth player in its ranks. If you have a youth player in goal, you have no other problems, even in the event of an injury or a possible substitution. The way we are playing now, it doesn't matter if Mariusz Kutwa, Karol Dziedzic, or Piotrek Starzyński played, if we want to make a substitution, we basically have to make two substitutions to fill these positions as we would like. So, of course, we are thinking about it and we want to prepare Patryk for it, "I hope he'll get between the posts someday. First and foremost, it's the goalkeeping coach's decision, Łukasz Załuska's, who works with the goalkeepers and is responsible for that. I've already mentioned this during the cup matches."

The start of the season wasn't a success for ŁKS. However, the Łódź team is currently on a winning streak, which the Kraków team will be looking to break. "Of course, it's a good example. There was already—it seems—heat around the club. I don't know about the club itself, but it was hot around them after that fourth round. But that's how it is, one away win and the first match won at Warta, gets things going. We can also say that it wasn't some great style or big performances from ŁKS, but they started picking up points, and that definitely builds the team from within. We also believe that there will come a match where the goal net will open up, we'll start scoring and winning," he said.

What changes does the coach notice in his former team? "I think the biggest change has been the ownership relationship, as a second owner has joined, with the same number of shares as Mr. Salski. Of course, every team relegated from the Ekstraklasa experiences upheaval, but let's remember that at our club, these weren't just cosmetic changes, and we didn't have time to work normally. ŁKS had a lot of changes, but they had more time, more opportunities, although after those first few rounds, there probably wasn't that peace. I believe this is a team that wants to play football. They definitely have some players with great potential. These last four matches, these four wins, have certainly given them more confidence," he continued. "A few players are still there from when I was there. There are also many new players, and besides, there's a new coach who has a slightly different idea for this team. Just as you can't judge by the fourth round, we can't judge by the ninth round either. Is it easier? It definitely is a bit. You know the players who are there. You also know the specifics of the place a bit. Let me put it another way, it definitely doesn't bother me. It's not like my job there will make it any problem to decipher their way of playing and what's going on there," he added.

ŁKS plays more open football than their previous opponents. Will it be easier for the Kraków team to compete against such an opponent? "I think most clubs struggle with positional attack when they defend very low. Even looking at the best European clubs – Barcelona, ​​Real Madrid. If someone lines up with ten players in front of the penalty area, there's no space to play the ball behind the defense. There's nowhere to run because it's crowded everywhere. Sometimes it feels like there's little movement, but there's nowhere to make that movement. I think we in Poland also have a big problem with this, and it's easier to play against a team that also wants to play open football. I think that matches like this, when two teams that want to play football, are more attractive. They give the impression of being more intense. They're more enjoyable to watch. ŁKS has a specific style of play because they play differently in the attacking phase, but in the defensive phase, especially in their own half, they focus heavily on solid defense," he said.

There was also a question about the performance of Łukasz Zwoliński, who has been in the starting XI for almost two months. "I'm not satisfied with Łukasz's performances or the results we're achieving. We should definitely have had many more points. I'll repeat what I said - I realize that Łukasz is under a lot of pressure, a lot of responsibility as a striker. Everyone expects a lot of goals from him. In the initial phase, when Łukasz arrived, there were matches when we tried to play with Angel and him in the starting eleven. However, I believe that to control the match, we need three central midfielders who will ensure we play this way. That's why Łukasz is getting less playing time for now, but it's certainly not a comfortable situation for him either. However, you can't, so to speak, "tense up" Łukasz so much. Because sometimes such "tension" is worse than when someone is relaxed. I just as much believe that this team will start scoring points, I just as much believe that Łukasz will start scoring goals. I know that patience is a word that is hard to find around the club, if I think about the fans, but I believe it will be like this," he explained.

Tamas Kiss is missing from the injury list. Does this mean he's being considered for the Łódź game? "Tamas is coming with us to Łódź. He's feeling good now. Of course, the illness had some impact on him, as he lost three kilograms, and we'll have to keep a close eye on him. However, he's with us, and he looked good yesterday and today. How fit is Jesus? I think he'll be able to play more than 45 minutes if needed," he replied, also referring to Jesus Alfaro's availability.

The next few days promise to be intense for the R22 team. "Fortunately, we had a break that allowed us to catch our breath. Whatever we say about the match against Warta, it was clearly visible, especially in the first half. I think that with some changes to the lineup, we'll be able to maintain this style of play and this intensity," he expressed hope.

"Honestly, I don't look at the table. I look at how we play. As I said when I joined the club, winning streaks are important in the first league. A winning streak makes all the difference. In Termalica's case, this is very evident. However, ŁKS's example is probably the best right now, because after the first rounds it was poor, but all it took was to win four games, or even three – not to mention that last match against Pogoń – and the situation was completely different. This is definitely the key to climbing the table. That means winning more. From what I remember, Wisła has been struggling with this since January," concluded coach Kazimierz Moskal.