Coaching duo: #ŁKSWIS

The #ŁKSWIS match in the outstanding 1st round of the Betclic 1 League ended in a 1-3 defeat for the Kraków team. After the match, coaches Kazimierz Moskal and Jakub Dziółka shared their opinions.

Kazimierz Moskal - Wisla Krakow

"First of all, congratulations to ŁKS. I think they were the better team in the first half. In the second, we definitely wanted to turn the game around, and I saw the energy in the players in the locker room at halftime, but the third goal decided the game. The only positive is that we played until the end, wanting to score, which we finally did. What's surprising, however, is how many chances we need, how many times we need to get into the box, cross, whether from a play or a corner kick, to score. The first two goals were conceded very easily for me again. The first from a set piece, the second from a cross, which, in my opinion, as I saw from the bench, the ball was in the air for a long time, and no one was interested in attacking, clearing, or defending it. A ŁKS player shoots into an empty net from close range to make it 2-0. It certainly wasn't supposed to happen this way, and we definitely need to change something. I don't know what yet, but we need to change something, because it can't go on like this," said the coach. Kazimierz Moskal: "As I said, ŁKS was better in the first half. They were more aggressive, more determined, in my opinion. However, I think it's also a matter of responsibility. If I'm a player and I'm marking an opponent, I have to be with them until the end and do everything I can to prevent conceding a goal. We definitely, not just in this match, but definitely concede too easily," he analyzed.

When asked if the White Star needed more changes in defense or perhaps in attack, the coach replied: "I'm sure I've said before a match that football is about scoring goals or... football is about not conceding goals, conceding fewer goals, or scoring one more than the opponent. I think we need to think about what's next, because, as I said, it can't go on like this."

Before halftime, the coach made two changes to the lineup. Why? "It was a tactical change, because we had different goals, I expected a different performance from these players, and that's why I made this decision. I don't often change players before halftime, but in this case, I felt I needed to react more quickly with the score at 2-0," he replied.

Journalists suggested that the match against ŁKS was slightly different from previous ones, in which Wisła had created more scoring opportunities: "I'll say it again – in the first half, ŁKS was definitely the better team, then in the second half we played until the end, and that's certainly why the match looked like that, with ŁKS leading 3-0, but weren't there any clear-cut chances? The situation when ŁKS made it 2-0 wasn't clear-cut for me either, and they scored. We're having a lot of trouble with that," he replied.

Should the team from Wawel Castle reorganize their goals for this season? "That's a difficult question, but it kind of ties in with what I said, that we definitely need to change something, because things don't look good right now. First of all, we're lacking points, and we need to think carefully about what to do next," he announced. So how can the team be motivated to face Chrobry Głogów? "I think the players, regardless of the team, should be motivated by the fact that we lost another match, and a club like Wisła needs to play better, needs to bounce back. We can't just look for solutions outside ourselves. We have to find those solutions internally, in the locker room," he said.

The fans of the team from Łódź welcomed coach Moskal with applause, to which the coach also commented: "It was the nicest moment today."

Jakub Dziółka - ŁKS Łódź

"Congratulations to everyone, once again to the team, once again to the coaching staff, because we were very well prepared for this match and also played well in the first half. We definitely had a lot of high defense, which gave us control of the match. Because Wisła had the ball in their own half and couldn't get into our penalty area often. We finally converted set pieces because we created chances, but we couldn't score from them. Today we succeeded. The match turned out as we expected with a favorable result. Wisła has enough quality, they are such a good team, that we knew they would be in our half more often, but our good defense, defensive actions, great dedication, good quality of actions in low defense, it also gave us a chance for counterattacks in the second half. We would certainly like to use them better, it didn't happen, but the third goal was definitely fully deserved and we won a very important match. We are continuing our winning streak. The team certainly deserved it with their consistent work in training, good preparation, and also I congratulate them once again," he assessed the fight.

Was the Łódź coach surprised that the Kraków team conceded goals too easily? "I wouldn't say it was easy. They simply made good moves, and other players did beforehand to create that situation. The trick is to work in the penalty area in such an easy position. We discussed a few weeks ago how to improve our efficiency, and yes, it's a training process and good moves by the offensive players, so that we can finally say at the press conference that it was an easy goal. But it's not an easy goal," he explained. "We definitely wanted to have more possession in the opponent's half, because that also meant Wisła wouldn't be in our half. But yes, I agree. I think the result also determined that, and we were aware of that. Yes, I also think we were more focused and took advantage of the chances we created," he added.

The match was originally scheduled to take place at the start of the season, but Wisła's cup campaign forced both teams to postpone. Does the coach think the match would have turned out differently if it had taken place on the scheduled date? "It's all just speculation, really. Today was a match, we were prepared for it, there were different players, we had a full squad, and we took advantage of that," he concluded.