ICYMI here’s what Head Coach Tony Popovic said ahead of Sunday’s home Semi-Final Leg One against Wellington Phoenix.
On riding the high of the Elimination Final win…
“We don’t want to lose those great positive thoughts that we got from that game (against City). And obviously, there’s a lot of emotion, it was a fantastic performance and result under difficult circumstances.”
“But you know we want to draw on that energy. We don’t want to just put it away. We want to use that emotion and the strength of that result and performance into this next challenge.”
On Wellington having an extra week off…
“You know, they earned the week off, so they deserve that week to refresh and get themselves ready for this game. Look, we know they’re a very good team. We’ve had three very tough matches against them thus far. We know they’ll come here full of confidence, but they’ll be playing the team that’s also full of confidence, full of belief and you know we want our fans to come out again.”
“They created an amazing atmosphere last week and they really did help us get over the line. And once we had the player sent off, we needed every ounce of support that we could get. And they certainly gave us that.”
On previous results against Wellington…
“I think, performance-wise, definitely in two of the games, we played very well. We didn’t get the results. So that’s something we have to have to manage this time. We’ve got to do even better this time. We’ve got to lift our performance from our last match against Melbourne City and also from what we’ve done previously against them. The players are obviously in great spirits. We’re very well aware of what we’re up against. It’s a semi-final, a very good opponent and you know we expect another tough game.”
On breaking down Wellington’s defence…
“It’s hard to predict how these games will go. But obviously, they’ve played very well all year and built a solid foundation at the back. Some outstanding performances consistently and when they go forward, they’re very efficient and very dangerous. So we know that. But you know, I believe we’ve also shown last week the resilience that we have in our character. And you know, we really showed that we can create some good opportunities.”
On the health and fitness of the squad…
“I think psychologically everyone’s in a good place. I think that type of game takes a lot out of you physically. So we’re happy that we’ve got the seven-day turnaround, obviously, no travel. Yesterday there were signs at training of us recovering physically. We’ve still got two more days, so come Sunday, I’ve got no doubt the boys will be ready.”
On Machach’s suspension…
“He’s okay now. Obviously, he had a lot of different emotions during the game and after, and the first session back was a bit difficult for him. But we’ve seen his bubbly personality come back again. He’ll not be available for us on the field, but he’ll be a key component off the field in supporting the team and helping us in training to get everyone up to speed and ready for these two tough games starting on Sunday.”
On the young players stepping up during the Elimination Final win…
“It’s excellent. It just shows how far they’ve come and they’ve grown that, you know, they’ve probably gone from players that just played a game to now being able to actually perform on the big stage.”
“We want them to embrace what happened and be able to repeat it again. They all came in and you know, when you’re missing those players like Brimmer, Bruno and Daniel off the field as well, the players have come in and done a wonderful job and it just shows the squad is strong. And I’m sure that whoever fills in for Zizou can do a good job.”Â
On learning from 2021’s Semi-Finals against Western United…
“We’ve obviously learned a lot from that experience. We played two games here, home and away. This time it will be a bit different where you really do feel the away game in the second leg with it being in New Zealand.”
“But it’s just about putting on a performance and knowing it lasts for two. You’ve got to do everything you can to get an advantage in the first leg while being composed and focused and, you know, being patient as well throughout the game.”
