Jovanovic on Greece-England: “People will help, but on the field we will be 11-11”! –

The National Team faces England tomorrow at the OAKA aiming for a positive result to take 1st place in their Nations League group. Ivan Jovanovic stated that the blue and white will fight in a full OAKA for the victory, while he stressed that our internationals must again play a big game to reach their goal.

The statements of the Federal coach in detail:

-On the first match against England and the difficulty of the match in OAKA: “The truth is that in order to win in England we had to play a perfect game. We must do the same tomorrow. It will be a tough game and tougher than the last one. If we want to confirm our good course, we will have to play with the same performance and mood. To be at a very good level so that we can hope for a very good result.”

-On the atmosphere that will exist at OAKA: “When we played at Wembley I had told the players about the atmosphere but he pointed out to them that the fans are not playing. Competing players will have to make correct decisions. They will have to be excellent to make a good game. We will have the presence of the crowd but on the field we are 11 against 11 and the result will depend on the performance of the two teams”.

-On England’s level and if he thinks there will be an underestimation on their part: “Definitely not. I think England are a great team. He may have some player absences but he certainly has a huge pool of players and can cover those who are missing. They are an excellent team that can cover every player. We have no right to think that England can be at a lower level of performance. Regardless of his absences, he will be a very serious opponent.”

-On the sold out OAKA: “I think it is positive for all of Greek football. It is a message that people love football in Greece. It is not difficult for the Greeks to fill the OAKA. That it was filled in a few hours shows the thirst of the people. Now it’s up to us to be able to keep them interested. We have this difficult role and responsibility to thank them and keep them for the next games in Greece and abroad. Let’s not forget how we had the presence of the world in England as well.”

– On whether the idea that his team is going for two results enters his mind: “I want to be honest. It does not enter and cannot enter. It doesn’t make sense. It will have more than 60,000 people who did not come to the stadium or will not come for “X”, who can secure 2nd place. We cannot go into a stadium with 60,000 people and look for a draw. You have to play a great game. “X” can never be an initial target. Neither I nor the players can accept a game to put more things into thought. The opponent may be better than us. We will never go into a game like that saying we are comfortable with two results. We have to have another perfect game. Against England we will have to be very good throughout the game.”

-On the call of the 17-year-old Mouzakitis and what he saw in him: “It is a matter that a press conference is not enough. I believe that at the moment Greece, based on the population and based on the teams, has a very large roster. From 25 to 26 players. One of my roles is to try to open up this roster with other players as well. My joy is great for children young in age to play in a big team. This can motivate more teams and more coaches. The demands of today’s players are much higher. The rest they have is getting less and less. There are also huge charges for the players the Nationals get. There are injuries and cards and my thinking is to open the roster with new guys and new players. To have more kids who live the atmosphere and have the goal of living it throughout their career.”

-On the lack of time to work with the players and that he focuses on discussions with them: “Look at the results is an important thing. Having made four wins, they too expected to gather for a game especially against England. They are a very good group who have very good relations. They understand what we want and do. They have very high spirits. It is normal because good results bring euphoria and people to the stadium. I am happy to have children who come here with joy and enthusiasm.”

-For the training center of the national team: “I want to thank you for the question. I would like to thank PAE Olympiacos and the president Vangelis Marinakis for the facilities. We had full facilities to do a good restoration. These days we did this cycle at the Olympiakos training camp. The way games are played now. It is important to have good facilities in addition to the pitches. It is certainly a disadvantage with its successes that the National Team has not managed to have its own training center that unites all the teams. It is a bet that the management of EPO is thinking about very seriously. Greece is entitled to a training program that will cover all Nationals for both men and women. The internationals are entitled to it and the previous generations were also entitled to it.”