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After the "General Financing A league" match between Marijampolė's "Sūduva" and Tauragė's "Tauro", a press conference was held with both teams' head coaches and the sole goal scorer Povilas Lukšys.
After the match, "Sūduva" team's head coach Virginijus Liubšys said:
"It was a very tough match. I want to thank the guys for the second half. I think they gave all their strength they had. We played poorly in the first half. We lacked sports success - scoring a goal was determined from a distance, they didn't take advantage of several opportunities to break through. But our desire to win led us to scoring a goal. The most important thing is the victory. Lately, we have not been successful in scoring, we were in a psychological slump. Now we have seven days until the next match. We will allow the guys a couple of days to rest from football and prepare for two serious matches - with "Šiauliai" and "Žalgiris".
Asked about the team's decrease in productivity, the coach said that it is due to "Sūduva's" inability to attack against zone defense.
"We cannot overcome zone defense when the whole opposing team is defending, everyone is standing on their side of the field. We fail to make quick passes, exploit the sides of the field. Additionally, we lack more precise long shots. We are aware of the problems and will solve them. In the future, we will face teams that will defend in their own half. We need successful individual actions and to utilize the players on the sides. The opponents fought like it was for their homeland today. I haven't seen such a spirited and fighting "Tauro" team in a long time. The opponents defended, had one dangerous counterattack at the end," V. Liubšys said.
After the match, "Tauro" team's head coach Giovanni Scanu said:
"We played a great game, my team showed character and a great desire. We chose the right tactics and were able to earn points. We are one of the youngest teams in the A league, I see the progress my team is making. Experienced M. Kižys suffered an injury in the first half today and we had to replace him with another young footballer. We lost, but "Sūduva" is a very strong team. They have a stronger team, a bigger budget, and an excellent club structure. These matches may be some of the best we have played."
The sole goal scorer Povilas Lukšys said after the match that it is difficult for "Sūduva" to attack against teams implementing defensive tactics.
"As you can see, it was a very tough match. With those teams whose players defend their own half, it is difficult for us to play. If we don't score a quick goal, we have to struggle throughout the game. The same tactic was used by the "REO" team, which we failed to beat. At the beginning of the season, we were used to playing in an indoor arena and everything was going perfectly for us. On the grass, the strengths equalize. So far, the grass itself is not the best quality, so the ball doesn't move as fast. Additionally, perhaps other teams have adapted to our style of play," P. Lukšys said.
