Media program before the match of Group E of the European Football Championship qualification Czech Republic – Poland, March 23, 2023, Prague. Tomáš Souček at the press conference of the Czech team.
Tórshavn – Captain Tomáš Souček admitted that the Czech footballers still have in their minds the unsuccessful match in Moldova in March, where they surprisingly drew goalless in the qualifiers for the 2024 European Championship. According to him, the motivation before Saturday's game in the Faroe Islands is even greater. The 28-year-old midfielder feels the charge and excellent mood from the team. He is also pleased with the unexpectedly favorable weather at the venue of the match.
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The Czechs entered Group E with a 3-1 home win over Poland, but then only got a point in Chisinau. “It didn't go well both as a team and as an individual, there wasn't a single good performance. Above all, we have to learn from it. We have to take it from individuals, everyone has to do their best, then a team is formed from it. We have to be ready, because it will not be an easy opponent , we are playing away again. We all have Moldova in our minds, we have all the more motivation to make it here,” said Souček at the press conference.
He is clear about what the national team needs to improve on. “Mainly in terms of quality, speed on the pitch, speed of passes, so that the ball flies from the foot and we don't hold it. We have to be more direct at the goal and quick in the counter-attack to keep the ball a lot. We showed a few clips from Moldova, where it was not good. All this and much more needs to be improved in order to succeed here,” he said.
In separate history, the Czech national team defeated the Faroes in all five duels with a combined score of 12:0. In November, in the preparatory match in Olomouc, they beat him 5:0 thanks to a hat trick by Mojmír Chytil.
“No one will underestimate anything, just because of the draw in Moldova, we will go all the more. We watched a few clips from the (November) match, but it was a friendly match. Tomorrow it will be much more difficult. They also have more motivation to succeed. We have to prepare for it. They also have a few clips. I believe that the players also have a lot of self-confidence from that match, which they will hopefully transfer to the one tomorrow,” declared Souček, who won the Golden Ball for the best Czech footballer of the season for the third time on Monday.
The duel in the metropolis of Tórshavn will take place on artificial grass. “We've been preparing on this surface since Monday. We wanted to use every touch to get used to the fact that it's a little different. I feel in the team that he's fired up and ready. We still have today's training on the field where we play tomorrow . I believe that we will show it tomorrow, because the mood in the team is more than good,” Souček said.
He was surprised by the sunny weather. “A lot of people told us that the weather isn't nice here. We arrived here and it's been clear for two days. We're glad we caught this weather. We'll see tomorrow night. I hope it's not too windy, otherwise I'm happy with the weather.” stated the former player of Žižkov, Liberec and Slavia.
Coach Jaroslav Šilhavy's men successfully landed on Thursday at an extremely small airport, the only runway of which is only 1,250 meters long. “There was a lot of talk about the fact that the conditions here are not easy. We rather laughed about it, our pilot managed it very well. We laughed about it even after landing. It was more of an adventure, but everything turned out well,” stated Souček, who last won the European Conference League with West Ham in Prague last week, which also included defender Vladimír Coufal.
In the current nomination of the national team, which three days after the Faroe Islands awaits a preparatory duel in Montenegro, midfielder Antonín Barák is missing, whom Šilhavý did not call up due to allegedly inappropriate behavior in the team. “The coach and I also had the advice of the elders and we said a few words about it. As for this case, he should stay in the cabin and he will stay there,” remarked the native of Havlíčkov Brod.
We certainly don't think that we will easily deal with the Faroe Islands, said coach Šilhavý
Coach of the Czech national football team, Jaroslav Šilhavý, does not consider the Faroe Islands to be a weak opponent and does not expect his team to compete with them in Saturday's qualifying match at the 2024 European Championship, he can easily help. According to him, they are a significantly better team at home. On the outsider's pitch, Šilhavý wants to make amends for the 0:0 draw against Moldova in March.
Sweden coach Hakan Ericson's side have won three of their last four games at home, beating the Turks 2-1 in Group C of the Nations League last September. “The Faroe Islands are a much better team on their home pitch. They have tormented many a favorite here, whether it is the artificial grass or the environment, which drives them forward,” Šilhavý said at the press conference.
“We definitely don't think that Faery are a weak team and that we can handle them easily. We clearly want to win, especially after the unsuccessful match in Moldova, but we fully respect their quality. That will be the preparation,” said the Czech coach.
The national team started the qualifying campaign with a 3:1 home victory over the Poles, but then unexpectedly lost two points in Chisinau. “We wanted to continue the match with Poland and the exact opposite happened. The Moldovans defended well, the terrain made it difficult for us to combine and we couldn't open them up, although we had some chances, but there should have been many more. Individual performances were not ideal, we lost two points. We have to win the match tomorrow,” declared Šilhavý, whose men lead Group E, which also includes Albania, by a point ahead of Poland.
Due to the draw in Moldova, he does not feel exceptional pressure. “In every match we play for the three points we need. I still feel the pressure. The qualification started off great, then we messed up the second match a bit. Now there is another match in which we want to get it back. Nervousness is healthy,” the coach pointed out.
The duel in Tórshavn will take place on artificial grass. “It's not quite normal, there aren't many artificial grasses where big matches are played. It will mainly depend on the weather, how it's sprinkled. The grass is flat and it shouldn't jump. But when the grass is dry, it rubs. We certainly don't want that to make excuses, we take it as it is,” said Šilhavy.
He feels energy from the team. “Feeling is one thing, the performance on the field is another, it will show there. I believe that whoever starts will give their 100% performance and contribute to the result,” remarked the former coach of Liberec, Jablonec and Slavia.
More space could be given to midfielder Václav Černý, who, according to the media, is headed to Bundesliga side Wolfsburg thanks to his excellent performances in Twente Enschede. In March against Poland, he played only two minutes and did not play at all in Chisinau.
“We feel determination, healthy self-confidence from the team. Vašek also fits into that, even though we already have the line-up in our heads. I don't want to spoil it, he definitely has it close. We met the fans here and they asked me about the line-up, so they already know,” stated Šilhavý
The match in Tórshavn will start on Saturday at 20:45 CET. Three days later, the Czechs will present themselves in a preparatory duel in Montenegro.
