Thursday, March 28, 2024

Postecoglou unhappy with ´poor´ Victory

SoccerNews in General Soccer News 23 Feb 2013

79 Views

Melbourne Victory coach Ange Postecoglou has blamed himself and his team after they were thrashed 6-2 by Central Coast.

Melbourne Victory coach Ange Postecoglou has blamed himself and his team after they were thrashed 6-2 by Central Coast.

The result marked a third straight loss for the Victory and leaves them in danger of slipping to fourth spot on the A-League ladder after the weekend’s action.

Postecoglou cut a deflated figure as he attempted to explain the four-goal loss on Saturday.

When given an opportunity to praise his younger brigade, specifically Connor Pain who made his first A-League start, Postecoglou blasted his whole squad.

“No thoughts on Connor Pain. We were poor everywhere tonight, young and old, everyone was pretty poor, beginning with the head coach and moving downwards,” he said.

The 47 year-old said his side looked poor from the outset.

“We certainly didn’t start well, we looked flat when we started and didn’t really take the game to them,” Postecoglou said.

“Collectively our defending was very, very ordinary tonight. Against a good side you will get punished like that.

“Individually we defended poorly and lost our battles (one-on-one) and lost our battles collectively.

“We have just to go back to training and keep working hard.”

Postecoglou was adamant the Victory needed to get good results while adjusting to the tactical system the former Brisbane Roar coach is trying to put in place.

“It’s one thing about working on a style of game. Our competitive levels today were nowhere near where they should be,” he said.

“It was boys against men and we need to rectify that.

“There was a marked difference, regardless of where we finish, between us and Mariners tonight. We have got to bridge that gap if we want to do well in the finals. I think that’s the most important thing.”

Postecoglou admitted his side may have struggled mentally with the occasion of playing the top side at their home ground.

“The losses aren’t mental. Is it mentally that maybe the Mariners are mentally stronger than us at the moment? Maybe, that could be a possibility, but again that’s pretty hard to coach,” he said.

“From our perspective all we can do is keep improving the fundamentals of our game and the individuals and our competiveness should be part of everything we do and it wasn’t tonight.”

The Victory host the Newcastle Jets next Sunday and Postecoglou says his side have no option but to improve.

“There is no respite in this league. If you don’t perform to a good level or the level that you need to you are going to get punished,” he said.

“On today’s performance we are well short of where we want to be.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

SoccerNews

Soccernews.com is news blog for soccer with comprehensive coverage of all the major leagues in Europe, as well as MLS in the United States. In addition we offer breaking news for transfers and transfer rumors, ticket sales, betting tips and offers, match previews, and in-depth editorials.

You can follow us on Facebook: Facebook.com/soccernews.com or Twitter: @soccernewsfeed.

SHARE OR COMMENT ON THIS ARTICLE

WE RECOMMEND

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This field is required *

Join the conversation!

or Register

Live Scores

advertisement

Betting Guide Advertisement

advertisement

Become a Writer
More More
Top