September stop in Iceland: promising draw score, 94th minute failure and 1-2 defeat. Black Friday, the thirteenth of October in Budějovice: a long lead, a goal from the last action in the 96th minute and an unlucky draw 1:1 with Wales. If there had been a collapse even in Tuesday’s fateful battle with Denmark, the twenty-one-year-old’s direct promotion to the championship, which will be hosted by Slovakia in the summer of 2025, might have been irretrievably gone.
“We were disappointed after Wales, but I dare say it didn’t spoil the atmosphere. The team is sitting more and more, we can bounce back from that against Denmark,” said captain Sejk.
And how to avoid unwanted eclipses at the end? “We need to decide the match as soon as possible and not give the opponent space to do something with the result. We have to concentrate until the end and beat Denmark,” emphasized Sejk.
By the way, on Sunday evening, he and his teammates went to clear their heads for the extra-league duel between Budějovice and Třinec. “We wanted to get out of the football world for a while. We spent time together, and the bonus was that we could talk about something other than just our work,” Sejk described.
Now, however, the number one topic in coach Jan Suchopárek’s team is once again football, otherwise it won’t even be possible before the last qualifying game of the year. The Danes, who went into the qualification draw from the first basket, started their journey to the European Championship already in June, when the previous Czech twenty-one team played at the EURO in Georgia. The results? Mandatory 2:1 win in Lithuania and 2:2 draw in shootout with Wales. In September, there were defeats in test matches against France and Slovakia.
A look at the varied Danish roster is interesting: goalkeeper Filip Jörgensen is playing regularly in Spain’s Villareal, right-back Anton Gaaei is gaining form in Ajax after a summer transfer, tall stopper Thomas Kristensen is looking around in Udine, Italy, and only 19-year-old central midfielder Oscar Fraulo is gathering experience in Utrecht. where he is visiting from the Bundesliga’s Mönchengladbach. “Everyone is vulnerable, which also applies to the Danes,” noted Sejk.
His team has so far fallen short of its offensive potential, scoring just once in both Iceland and Wales. “If we dominate like we did in the first half against Wales and convert chances, it will work,” convinced Sejk. “We have it in our hands: if we win it all, we will be promoted from first place.”
And if not? Better not to think.
European Under-21 Championship qualification in 2025, Group I
1.Wales31206:552.Denmark21104:343.Iceland11002:134.CZECH REPUBLIC20112:315.Lithuania20023:50
2023-10-17 10:21:47
#pressure #Lions #win #fateful #battle #relaxed #playing #hockey
