The Red Devils qualified for the 2024 European Championship in Vienna on Friday with a 2-3 win against Austria, but Domenico Tedesco had seen from the bench that it had cost blood, sweat and tears. “Even when we were 0-3 ahead, I didn’t feel like the race was over,” the national coach admitted.
“We made a mistake and that cost us the 1-3 and then we ended up with ten. We missed opportunities to score the 1-4 and that almost cost us dearly. You know it’s always difficult against such a team, in a fantastic stadium. The audience supported their team from start to finish. And they kept going for it. The Austrians continued to believe in it until the end. They have a good coach, a good team, but above all an exemplary mentality.”
Tedesco surprised by adding a second striker next to Romelu Lukaku with Loïs Openda. “The idea was to put more pressure on the central defenders. In the first leg in Brussels, the Austrians created too many chances with their vertical play. I wanted to defend compactly on the flanks, practice patience and then attack with a lot of depth. That worked too. : We were able to score on the counter quite quickly.”
In the final phase (87th), Tedesco allowed Arthur Vermeeren and Mandela Keita to make their debuts to strengthen the midfield. “I am happy that they were able to make their debut as Red Devil, even though it was not in the easiest circumstances. They now know that there is confidence in them. They are doing an excellent job in Antwerp. We have a lot of good youth. I I sometimes have crazy ideas and want to call on more young people, but you cannot select thirty new players every match. It has to go step by step.”
This article is originally published on bruzz.be
