The Latvian national football team can fight for victory in the first match of the 2024 European Championship qualification away against Wales, according to the team’s head coach Dainis Kazakevičs.
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Latvian football players will start the “Euro 2024” qualification on Tuesday evening in Cardiff. The first match will be a match against Wales, but after that there are also battles with Croatia, Turkey and Armenia.
“It was a good, useful stage of preparation in Ireland. We did almost everything we had planned. Unequivocally – the Welsh national team is the favorite of the game. But we take this situation simply – in tomorrow’s game both teams have the opportunity to fight for three points,” Latvian Football Federation ( LFF) quotes Kazakevičs on his website. “We understand and respect that Wales have been regularly playing in finals recently, but in one particular game we will do everything to fight for the three points.”
Wales have already started qualifying, drawing 1-1 against Croatia in stoppage time last week, while Turkey beat Armenia 2-1.
“I was not surprised by the result achieved by the Welsh national team in the game with Croatia, nor by the performance of the Welsh in that match. It is clear that Wales is a competitive opponent also against the background of Croatia. But a draw like this will probably help Wales to build an updated team model,” Kazakevich pointed out.
Even though the Latvian national team was drawn from the fifth basket in the qualification, the captain of the Latvian national team expresses confidence that this does not prevent them from being competitive in every game. “Wales will try to justify their favorite status in front of their spectators. We expect a tough enough game, but I believe we can fight for victory.”
“Gareth Bale not playing is both a plus and a minus for us. Bale was a team leader who could achieve a result with his qualities. On the other hand, we see that Wales has a sufficiently wide and strong group of players that can compensate for the departure of such a player with other qualities ,” emphasized Kazakevičs.
Meanwhile, midfielder Jānis Ikaunieks is preparing to play his 50th match for the national team on Friday in Cardiff. Before the game, he said that it will be an important event for him.
“We didn’t play with the national team for a long time, five months. This will be our first game in a new qualification cycle, and we are ready to fight for points. I think Wales is professional enough, I don’t think they will underestimate us,” said Ikaunieks. “They will want to show their best performance in front of their spectators. There is not so much pressure on us, because in the media we are considered to be the bottom of the group. But I know my teammates well. It is an honor for each of us to play for the national team, we will do what we can.”
