OMM Newsroom
Former Azerbaijan U-17 head coach Vagif Sadygov has commented on the team’s 0-7 defeat to Germany in the qualifying round of the European Championship. The coach, who is currently with the squad, said some players, including the team’s strongest performers, had been called up to the U-19 and U-20 teams, leaving the U-17 side unable to field its full-strength squad. Sadygov stressed that this was his personal opinion.
He said Germany’s U-17 team has one of the strongest academy systems in European and world football. At this age level, there is a significant gap between teams in physical preparation, pace of play and tactical discipline.
Sadygov noted that Azerbaijan defended compactly for about 45 minutes in the first half and did not allow the opponents many scoring opportunities, but conceded twice after simple errors. After the break, the players became tired, could not cope with the opponents’ high press and conceded a succession of goals.
The coach attributed the defeat to the young players’ limited international experience and a lack of high-intensity matches in the domestic league. He said in comments to fanat.az that he hoped the team would regroup for its upcoming matches against Northern Ireland and Lithuania and seek positive results.
