Vincenzo Montella, 51, drew the most important conclusions, after the victory with Romania, score 1-0a match that brings Turkey one step closer to the World Championship.
Ferdi Kadioglu's goal determined the outcome of the match at “Tupraș” in Istanbul, from the start of the second half. Romania had a huge chance through Nicolae Stanciu, who hit the crossbar in the 78th minute, but, grosso modo, the hosts dominated the dispute, without the “tricolors” making too many demands on Cakir's goal.
Montella admits he told his students to be patient tonight, expecting the way the Tricolors played, defensively, with a compact block and low. He declares himself satisfied with the approach of the Turkish players and, with a dose of arrogance, says that it is the result he expected.
Vincenzo Montella: “Even though Romania defended very well, we managed”
“We take each match as it is. I am very happy with the performance of the players. We did very well, even though Romania defended effectively.
We played a mature game, we were compact and did not leave many spaces. In the end, we narrowly won, but what matters most is the victory. We are waiting for the next match, we will see what will happen”, the Italian coach said at the beginning of the press conference.
Vincenzo Montella, at the press conference after Turkey – Romania 1-0 // photo: Ionuț Iordache (GSP)
“We expected Romania to play like this, we told the boys to be patient. We knew they had a very fast right-back. In the second half, we changed our tactics a bit and attacked in the lateral areas, with deep balls and we managed to score. It was, after all, a result I expected“, Montella also said.
The Italian got angry at the question of a Romanian journalist: “Will you resign if you don't qualify Turkey for the World Championship?”
“It was a balanced match today, but also in the next match, even if we lose it, it does not mean that my work was judged only by this one. There is no question of resignation. You are a journalist, if you make a mistake in an article, do you resign?!” Montella said.
Turkey's press officer also chimed in: “Discussion over! That was enough provocation.”
Each match must be taken individually. Tactics differ from match to match. We were patient. If you are impatient, you can make mistakes. We didn't give up the spaces, we played compactly, we know that Turkey has not been to the World Championship for a long time, there is still one final left to play. Hopefully we can make the fans happy and get there.
I thank the fans, it's hard to expect many goals in a game like this. I'm a foreigner too and I know the fans don't have patience. We told the players that this is what we need. I am honored by my players for what they have achieved today!
I have many memories with Lucescu. When I debuted as a coach, I played against Shakhtior. I know him from there. When I was working in Milan, he came to see Calhanoglu often. I have a special respect for Mr. Lucescu, and so does Hakan Calhanoglu. He is a great coach, the third place in trophies in history.
– Vincenzo Montella, Turkey coach
