Anar Hasanov writes…
Hope has been lost in our national team, which has become the most wounded place in Azerbaijani football. The fans who watched the game saying that our team would win the game against Estonia, this time they were disappointed again, their faces were not smiling.
Well, who will take the blame this time? Fernando Santos, or players who don’t understand the essence of the uniform he wears?
The arrival of the former Portuguese coach was considered a wrong decision by football fans and the sports community. Everyone believed that Santosh would fail. It seems that this possibility is true. Although the 70-year-old coach became European champion in 2016 with the Portuguese team, he has not yet been able to do anything with Azerbaijan. It can also be understood to a certain extent: the team that an experienced coach will present is limited, he doubts who to call. In the three games played so far, Santus has prepared for each game with a different team.
Let’s go back to the game with Estonia. With the exception of Elvin Jafarguliyev, it cannot be said that our other players have shown combativeness. Where is Elvin, who did not sit still for 90 minutes, where are Ramil Sheydayev and Renat Dadashov, who could not score the seven-meter goal from two meters away…?
It is very interesting that in the national team there are Emin Mahmudov, who has been out of shape for a long time, and Rustam Ahmadzade, who has not yet been able to play a normal match in Zira.
Despite the superiority in ball control, our team failed in the first goal due to a gap in the defense and an error by the goalkeeper. Well, it is understandable that a moment of confusion caused us to fall behind on the scoreboard. Elvin Jafarguliyev’s activity deserved a penalty, we managed to balance the score. But what is the manifestation of intelligence and logic to fall behind in counting again before a minute has passed?
When it was said that you should not play a defensive game, you should attack, it was not intended to leave every ball that flew towards the goal empty. The opponent showed a 100% result: only three shots on goal and three goals.
The problems of the national team have not been solved for many years. Either there is a coach, but the team does not, or good players join the team, but there is no coach to play; We have not yet seen the day when these two elements come together. It is as if they were opposite magnetic poles. If there is a problem, what should be drawn? Our players who play on the offensive line cannot reach the seven-meter goal and the midfielders try to secure them. It doesn’t work, it doesn’t work.
In world football, players end their careers when they turn 32 or 33 years old. “Who else is there?” in our selection. Logically, players between 32 and 35 years old are allowed to play. If “we can’t find anyone else”, if we have accepted defeats, maybe we should give young people a chance and train them? Even if they lose or lose, should they at least learn until they are 30 years old?
It is clear that our footballers who currently play in the national team do not know the uniform they wear or the colors they wear. Fernando Santos’ recent career decline continues in the Azerbaijan national team. Losing to Slovakia and Sweden was acceptable, but losing to Estonia was not forgivable. In the group we decided on, our only rival was the Estonians. We couldn’t do it with them either.
There are more difficult revenges ahead. What can we expect from our team, which lost 1:3 to Estonia and has seven points each in the duel against Slovakia and Sweden?
At least it is necessary to play with more confidence in front of the home field and the fans and work for victory. The only way to do this is to leave a normal team on the field and make the right tactical moves.
In any case, the first games have already passed. As they say, it happened. Now it’s time for the return matches. Although we can’t say the next team, Don Santos will probably face the same opponent for the second time. If the observations obtained in the three previous games make the coach stumble in the next games, we will have to think about what to call him…
