In the 15th round of the PKO BP Ekstraklasa, we drew with Korona Kielce. We invite you to listen to the post-match press conference featuring coach Szymon Grabowski.
First and foremost, I want to thank the players, and, most importantly, our amazing fans. What they do for us is incredible. At the moment, unfortunately, we are unable to match their level, and we will do everything we can with the team to bring them as much joy as possible, as soon as possible, because they truly deserve it like no one else.
My players were certainly eager to win today. We are fully aware of our position in the standings, this round, and the season, and we truly want to earn points. So, while we respect this draw, we recognize that it doesn’t do much to lift our spirits.
Myślę, że mieliśmy w miarę dobre wejście w mecz, a momentami kontrola piłki była na tyle dobra, że powinniśmy być bardziej niebezpieczni w trzeciej tercji. Za mało było według mnie konkretów pod polem karnym czy w polu karnym przeciwnika.
When we attacked the penalty box, very few players were involved, and we simply couldn’t pose a stronger threat to the opponent. We attempted some moves with through balls, passes between Korona’s wingbacks and central defenders, but it wasn’t enough, and our lack of presence in the penalty area meant we weren’t as dangerous as we wanted to be.
We thought the halftime adjustments would yield better results. Let’s be honest, in the second half, we weren’t as threatening, we didn’t control the ball as well, and the opponent challenged us multiple times on set pieces. In the end, we must appreciate this draw even more. We have another two weeks before our next game, which will be very important for us as well.
On the expected goals (xG) metric and the game plan against Korona:
I think everyone recognized our problem today. Our xG today wasn’t as high as in recent games, and the plan was to pull the half-right or half-left defender out using our number eight or nine, and take advantage of the space created in those moments. However, our number nine’s space attacks were not effective enough.
We were passive or lost possession too quickly and too often, which we aimed to avoid, and that is a weakness that made us less dangerous to our opponent. We also wanted to activate our wide, high-standing wingers in the flanks. This worked a few times, especially in the first half, but often the final pass was inaccurate, or the cross was too short. So, we didn’t help ourselves in the final third. There were also too few progressive movements attacking space.
On slowing the game’s pace at the end:
Bogdan managed things well, looking from the perspective of my team. He recognized the moment when Korona was gaining momentum and posing a threat to us, especially from set pieces. I think it was more about trying to control the game, which is normal.
