Our Liga de Tineret side dropped two points away at FC Argeș after a late penalty, but head coach Goran Kopunović still gave a positive assessment of the performance.

Our Liga de Tineret side dropped two points away at FC Argeș after a late penalty, but head coach Goran Kopunović still gave a positive assessment of the performance.

According to the coach, his team dominated from the very beginning and could have decided the match early: “We played against a very good team and I feel we were well prepared. We worked hard all week, and this was one of our best matches this season. I don’t want to sound arrogant, but based on the first twenty minutes we could have been leading by three or four goals.”

Kopunović highlighted that after taking the lead, FK created several big chances but failed to convert them. “We scored early and then created several huge opportunities, but we couldn’t find the net even with an empty goal. I’m happy we created so many chances, but of course it’s frustrating that we missed them.”

The coach does not like speaking in hypotheticals, but admitted that the missed chances had a major impact on the match. “If we had taken them, maybe the game would have gone differently, but I don’t like speaking in conditional terms. The match remained intense and competitive, both teams wanted to win.”

The penalty awarded in the 87th minute ultimately cost the team two points, although the coach emphasized his side also had chances to win. “In the 87th minute, the referee awarded a penalty to the opponents. Even so, I think based on the flow of the game, we also had the chance to decide it, but we didn’t take it.”

Overall, Kopunović was satisfied with his team’s performance, especially praising their attitude and values. “I’m very pleased with the team’s attitude, the respect shown, their honesty, determination, and running effort. Congratulations to the boys, I’m very proud of them again.”

He also stressed that valuable lessons can be learned despite the dropped points: “Of course, it hurts to lose two points, but we can learn from situations like this. This time we learned how to win a match like this.”

Of the remaining two rounds, the next one will be particularly special: “There are two rounds left. The next match will be very important, as it will be the boys’ last home game at youth level, against this year’s champions Farul. I’m counting on everyone, and we want to prepare well to play a good match. Every point matters, and at the end we’ll see where we stand.”

R. A.
Archive photo: Pál Zoltán