HJK’s European games continue next against Slovenian NK Maribor.
HJK clearly fell short in the second round of the Champions League qualifiers against Viktoria Plzen. Last week, the Czech team, which claimed a 1-2 away win in Helsinki, was a rude host on Tuesday with figures of 5-0. The Czech champion advanced to the third round with a combined goal of 7–1.
Plzen practically decided the match and the victory immediately after scoring three goals in the opening half.
Head coach of HJK Toni Koskela commented to Urheilu that the Czech opponent was simply better.
– Today we started very well. There was a goal slot that we didn’t use. We knew that against such an opponent we had to be really clinical. That’s not what we were about.
– We tried to make small changes many times, but we couldn’t use it that way. We also weren’t able to move the ball in a way that would have been properly useful against the opponent’s man guard. We didn’t get close to our maximum level, Koskela added.
HJK’s European games will continue next in the third qualifying round of the Europa League against Slovenian NK Maribor. The opponent in question has not yet been properly trained in HJK.
– There will still be a champion of his country who is used to winning games and has a routine planned. A difficult opponent will certainly be up against him again, Koskela stated.