Roberto Martínez analyzed the draw with Croatia in Split
In the aftermath of the draw in Split, with Croatia (1-1), Roberto Martínez argued about the resumption of the three central system. In a press conference, on Monday night, the national coach pointed to adapting the strategy to the characteristics of the starters.
— It’s important to be flexible, against Poland we used a line of five defenders, which allowed Diogo Dalot and Pedro Neto to position very well. Today, we change, with João Cancelo inside.”
«We need to look for the best structure for the players. And not the other way around, with players rigid in a tactical structure. It is important to achieve these objectives in competitions like the Nations League,” he said.
Regarding the development of the last day of the group stage, Martínez highlighted the performance until half-time.
«The first part was spectacular, due to the attitude and application of the concepts. We scored a goal and even got a good opportunity, through Rafael Leão, to score the second goal, in the first half.”
— The second half was different, with a lot of pressure close to our goal and we were unable to control the match. We conceded a goal, created chances, but I feel proud, because I saw professionalism. Today we saw what Portugal is like in terms of player training.”
«We achieved a high level performance and the draw is fair. Croatia managed three good opportunities, but the performance in the first half makes me proud”, he concluded.
Portugal secured the second draw in the group stage, totaling 14 points and progressing to the quarter-finals of the League of Nations, to be played on the 20th and 23rd of March.
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