Coaching duo: #ZNIWIS

The White Star players experienced an emotional rollercoaster on Friday. After the first half, there was no indication that the three points would return to Wawel. And yet! It was a wild match – a victory for Wisła Kraków – as the coaches of both teams assessed.

Albert Rudé - Wisla Kraków

"I think it's very simple – first half, second half… Our first half was – as you say – a disaster! I couldn't believe what I was seeing. We'd been putting pressure on the players all week. We also had an hour-long training session with the CLJ U-19 team to try to solve situations with a defense like our opponents' in this match, but we couldn't cope. It was a disaster. At halftime, we talked about how the goal was slipping away from us. It was important to get back to this match, to the competition, to the quality in the final third, to fight for the three points, to other elements to start putting pressure on our opponents. And we got back to the competition. We scored three goals and started playing fantastically. Of course, we tried to play well in the first half, but if you don't have the right attitude in duels, forget about it. However, after the break, we showed the kind of attitude that allowed us to win this match," began coach Albert Rude. "We did absolutely everything we could to improve all week. We tried to touch every part of the game – emotional, physical, technical, tactical. Every single one! We knew we were going to face a very good team that plays very well in defense and attack. We knew that if we didn't have a very good mindset for this match, we would suffer. I'm sure the team wasn't relaxed. I'm 100 percent sure of that! The players got the right messages; everything was shown on video. At this point, I can't find an answer to why we looked like that in the first half. But I said the same thing to the team in the locker room. I also said that sometimes these things happen and we have to improve," he continued.

Michał Żyro, who was brought on after the break, gave the team a boost, to which the coach commented: "It's very simple. I have no doubts about Michał and the other players competing for a place in the squad. They're all very committed."

David Junca also put in a strong performance, assisting two of his teammates' goals. Why weren't we watching him from the start? "I mentioned this at the pre-match press conference. David suffered an injury in pre-season and was sidelined for a long time. Today we have to be very cautious with him, so we decided he'll play 45 minutes. His coming on with Michał Żyro meant we tried to change our formation for the second half to attack all out. We played very boldly, compactly, trying to prevent counterattacks, but when we won the ball back, we tried to counter. However, our main priority was to have plenty of players in the penalty area," he explained.

Mariusz Misiura - Znicz Pruszków

"I'll start by congratulating the coach and the Wisła Kraków team for winning this match. I'm filled with strong emotions because it was my 100th match in Znicz Pruszków. I remember that at the first match against Motor Lublin there were 65 people, and today the entire stadium is there. And instead of an opponent from the second league, we have a thirteen-time Polish champion, with whom I believe we managed to play on equal terms in the first half. In the second half, we saw great quality and what I was talking about before the match – the coach's idea for a very attacking game. As I said before this match – I'm very happy that such coaches work for us in Poland, because thanks to them, our football has a chance to develop. Congratulations again. And on the occasion of these 100 matches, I would like to thank President Sylwiusz Mucha-Orliński, all the members of the board, all the presidents who have been my presidents for these three years. All the officials, all my colleagues from the staff, all the players with whom we share beautiful moments. And I thank them in the same way. for this evening, because even though we lost 2-3, it was a very good match played by us," concluded the manager of the team from Pruszków.

When asked what the hosts lacked to keep the three points in Pruszków, the coach replied: "I think in the first half there was more space behind our defense because we played higher up, but in the second half I think we were getting into the penalty area too quickly. Our number nines were sometimes supposed to close down passes to the number sixes and look for opportunities to attack the center backs. I think we were too often focused on the number sixes and allowed the center backs to carry the ball very deep, to 30-35 meters, and play the ball to the wide areas. By then we were already having to drop into the penalty area. That's why we started looking for substitutions from the number nines to find faster attacks on the center backs, so we wouldn't be forced into a low defense. But you also have to give quality to the opponent. We prepared for the different options the opponent has in this match." The six-man's dropping into the wide areas of the pitch, the full-back's rotation with the winger, Rodado's dropping deeper. If you were to break down this match tactically, I think the level was very high. That's why I praised the coach here, because there are very few teams in the First League that are so good at positional attacking. I'm very glad that there are such teams in Poland, because I think our biggest problem is positional attacking. And Wisła Kraków is showing that it's possible to play like that. We're constantly learning. I think there were moments this season when we were able to demonstrate that, but today, against an opponent like Wisła Kraków, we couldn't switch to positional attacking in the second half. We were looking for a fast attacking game. We couldn't defend the penalty area effectively anymore. We couldn't launch a counterattack effectively anymore. The opponent capitalized on their opportunities, scored three goals, and won 3-2. We need to forget this match as quickly as possible and give them our best shot against Arka Gdynia on Wednesday."

Despite the defeat, the Yellow-Reds coach directed words of praise towards his players. "I will stand behind my players, because when we started working together two and a half years ago, most of them were reserve players in the first and second division teams. Last season, we were promoted to the first division and were actually strengthened by players from the second division. Honestly, despite this defeat, I feel immense pride in how my players performed against such a great opponent. I think that if we hadn't been so quickly pushed to 30-35 meters in the second half, there might have been a better chance for a positive result, but that didn't happen. As for the quality, I believe my players have enough to continue playing in the first division. I will believe in that and fight for us to stay in this league. I don't want to be too strict with them today, because let's not forget who we played against. We played against Wisła Kraków. A team that belongs in the top league. A club that probably has ten or twelve times the budget of ours and other organizational capabilities, financially, so for me today they were great players for not giving up right from the start. And at times they fought on equal terms, and Wisła Kraków deservedly won by that one goal," he analyzed.