Fenerbahce Coach İsmail Kartal made much-talked statements after the match in which they were eliminated by Olympiakos.
“IT WAS BAD TO BE ELIMINATED BY PENALTY”
Speaking about the match, Kartal said, “After all, we started the match very well in front of our wonderful fans. We were very fast-paced in the first half and got the goal we wanted. We had the upper hand in the second half. As a result, we could not score the second goal and my players were stressed. When the match went to extra time, we made compulsory changes. With the changes, we finished 2nd, We wanted to score the 3rd goal and advance to the next round. In the end, it was bad to be eliminated. I thank my team for the fight we put in. We deserved to go through the round. The reason we couldn’t get through was not being able to score the second goal. We fought well from the beginning to the end. “We found a position, but we just couldn’t score. Szymanski had a cramp and Becao had a problem in his groin, so we made necessary changes.”
“OUR BEST PENALTY TAKER PLAYERS LOST”
Commenting on the players who missed the penalties, the experienced coach said, “Fred was injured for a long time. We wanted to protect him and continue with a more rested player. Our best penalty takers lost. Tadic and Bonucc are players with many careers and have always been successful in penalties. Unfortunately, they could not do it today.” . Sorry, we are looking ahead. We had a great tempo but we couldn’t take advantage of the clear opportunities. Our players were stressed because we made some problematic changes in the extra time. We deserved to win the match in terms of percentage, but it didn’t happen. “We were embarrassed by our fans and upset them. Despite everything, we were dominant in the game. We could not score the second goal, we did not expect this result.”
Evaluating the moves he made, Kartal said, “Sometimes you change your players and get rewarded with the moves. Sometimes this does not happen. Some of the players responded, but some players could not. These are things that can happen in the game.”
“WHAT HAPPENED BETWEEN YOU AND FRED?”
“What kind of conversation took place between you and Fred?” Answering the question, Kartal said, “We talked to Fred in the 86th minute. He was injured for a long time. Considering the extra time, we brought in a more rested player. We made forced changes with Becao and Szymanski in the extra time. We were eliminated in a way we did not want. Tadic was looking for a pass instead of shooting. Tadic is not a player who normally shoots. He has his own shooting style. Bonucci is a player with a lot of career. These are the players we trust most. “Both the players and we are sad. We fought so well, but getting eliminated while trying to score the second goal made us and them sad.”
