Coaching duo: #WISTYC

Wisła Kraków earned a point in the 15th round of the Betclic 1 League thanks to a draw with GKS Tychy. Coaches Mariusz Jop and Artur Skowronek shared their thoughts after the match.

Artur Skowronek - GKS Tychy

"We really need points to feel comfortable in the table, and from that perspective, we're not happy with this point, but on the other hand, I see a lot of positives after this match and I feel like it's a small breakthrough in being able to function with stability. I think about what we showed on the pitch. I'm convinced that the players finally understood that we can work like this every weekend. This way, create chances, play boldly, simply find fluidity, and certainly a lot of the joy of being a footballer and being able to simply do what you love every day. I think the situation we're in is a bit of a crisis – that's how I would describe it. In such moments, you sometimes lose it, but I'm glad that the players showed absolutely no fear. They showed courage, they showed determination, and they demonstrated what we've been training for, not just since yesterday, but for the past few weeks – high pressing on such a difficult surface, with such high quality, we simply created good chances. I would even say that in some moments, we were 100 percent. And that's a shame, but congratulations." "I want to thank the players for their belief in this, in the path we're taking. The same goes for the entire coaching staff. I believe that consistency will soon reward us in the table, reward us with points," the Tychy coach began.

When asked if closing Wisła's play on the wings was key, the coach replied: "That's what we want to show all the time. We want to build this team's DNA, and I believe this is the third consecutive match where we've seen this. We focused on shortening the field, where we were very close to the opponent. We knew that Wisła sometimes wanted to counterattack with four players, not just Zwoliński and Rodado, but we maintained a very good balance, preventing Wisła from developing such momentum on counterattacks. But also when Wisła tried to build in different formations, we wanted to take away their strengths, namely quality and playing through the middle, and the players succeeded well in this, but I must emphasize – it was the same way before, but of course, we're missing points. However, I think this is the right approach. Consistency... I believe, I'm convinced, that it will bring points."

Another weakness in the team led by coach Skowronek, according to the media, was a lack of effectiveness. "It's true, this is definitely our problem. We're not scoring goals, even though we were entering the third period quite easily in parts, but we're not making good decisions. And our success rate is such that we're not even taking shots, even in very good situations. We have the power to help the players again in the next micro-cycle, provide the kind of training environment, time pressure, and numbers in the penalty area that will improve their decision-making. We have good players; we have to free them up, we have to break them down, and we're constantly working on that. We're definitely adding a lot more positional, formational, and individualization training, and we won't stray from this path. We have to be consistent here, and I believe in breakthroughs. Not just from the strikers," he continued.

For Artur Skowronek, the match against Wisła is one of those special moments: "It's true, yes – Wisła is definitely a special place for me. I'm proud to have been their coach and that we fulfilled our task, we know what it was. Wisła will always be a determining factor, and this ground here will make the players feel something more. Simply put, the history of this club, the fans, the atmosphere, the great pitch – it always determines that whoever comes here will give them something more subconsciously. But I also want to emphasize that after the international break, after the friendly against Opava, this team has found their rhythm, but we can't defend it in terms of results, and as I said at the beginning of this press conference, these players have achieved a mental breakthrough. And that's what's most important to me in all of this tonight," he noted.

Mariusz Jop - Wisla Kraków

"We, as a staff, as a whole group, as a team, certainly feel disappointed and we feel that we, and the fans, expected us to win. We did everything we could to do it. However, I think we had too many easy turnovers. I think we played too nervously at times, meaning too many long passes. We lacked a bit of patience and effectiveness in some moments, because it must be admitted that the opposing goalkeeper had a great day and it was difficult to beat him. Overall, I congratulate Coach Skowronek, because as I said at the pre-match press conference – this is a team that is clearly making progress, working hard on the pitch, and they are a tough opponent. I think they will earn points in the coming matches," began Coach Mariusz Jop. "We definitely lacked the individual quality we have in attack. The players expect more from themselves, and we, as coaches, also expect more when it comes to offensive actions, not only from the wingers, but also in other positions," he added.

Marc Carbó was absent due to injury, replaced by Olivier Sukiennicki. "I think Sukiennicki played a good match overall. Of course, we can't expect him to make as many tackles as Marc, but I think he played well today," the coach noted. "This is one of the areas where Marc is definitely much more comfortable working with James. James in the number eight position, where we're pressing high, feels those moments better. And the same goes for when he has to move out of position, from a horizontal to a vertical position. Here, too, on our wings, our opponents were too quick to orient themselves towards the player who provided width. And we opened up the middle a bit too quickly. So these are things we've been working on for a long time. However, in some areas, it didn't work as well as we would have liked," he analyzed.

Kacper Duda's return from a long injury layoff was met with positive feedback from the fans. "Of course, I'm very happy that Kacper is back in the team, but I'm also aware that after such a long break, we need to give him time to return to optimal physical condition, as well as in terms of his sense of space, ball feel, and teamwork. We definitely need to wait until he's the Kacper we remember from last season, as he had a very long break," the coach noted.

Patryk Letkiewicz is performing well between the posts for Wisła, and was also praised by the coach: "Yes, 'Letki' is confirming his good form. It was similar in Płock and in previous matches. Each match is definitely a moment for him where he gains confidence, and this is especially evident in his play in the forward line, where he is courageous and makes good decisions. I wish him continued form."

The topic of the White Star's better performance against teams at the top of the table came up again. "I wouldn't say Termalica played ultra-offensive here. I think GKS Tychy was more daring, from my perspective. Of course, there was a moment when they lined up low in a 5-4-1 formation at the end of the second half. You could see that the coach made that change to increase the height, because he wanted to keep the draw. It's certainly not an easy task when time is running out and we're starting to get a little nervous. I think this is the moment for us to be patient in building up and do what we want, because if we're looking for solutions we haven't practiced, like playing long balls and collecting the ball, and only building up after collecting the long ball, that's not what we want to do. We want to build from the back, switch sides, be patient, and in that high third, make the moves we've been working on in terms of moving players. And today, some of that nervousness was visible, and the running out of time made some players seem to make bad decisions, so, as I said, we're definitely disappointed that we didn't win at home." - he said.

Media representatives inquired about the changes, which they believed hadn't yielded the expected results. "It's hard to say at this point why, because we remember Baena coming on against Termalica and providing two assists. We remember Kiss coming on and scoring against Wisła Płock. Until now, these changes have yielded numerical results, benefiting us as a team. Now, in fact, these changes haven't achieved much. This is certainly something for us to analyze, to consider why," he continued.

Wisła's youth players also received praise. Alongside Patryk Letkiewicz, Mariusz Kutwa also made an appearance. "I don't particularly care about age, but if someone does their job well on the pitch, then there's a place for them. Of course, we have to consider the rule that one youth player must be on the pitch at least once, but both Letkiewicz and Kutwa, with their performances, confirm that they win this competition, regardless of whether they're 18 or 20. It's almost like their current athletic form is the deciding factor here," concluded Mariusz Jop.