Adelaide United Head Coach, Carl Veart, gave his thoughts on the Reds’ Round 4 match against Perth Glory, dissecting the match, the goals, the conditions, and some tactical decisions.
Goals from Captain, Craig Goodwin, and Japanese forward, Hiroshi Ibusuki in the first half were enough for Veart’s side to claim all three points.
Glory managed to score what would become a consolation goal before half-time, but United saw-out the victory to claim their first three points of the season.
Thoughts on the game:
“It was a difficult game, they made it very difficult for us, and we didn’t make the most of the opportunities that we created.
“We had enough opportunities (today) to score three or four goals.
“It’s something that we’re working on at training, but it’s something that we need to start implementing in games because we can’t make (the end of games) so nervous, just not for the for the staff, but also for the fans.
“I’m sure they (the fans) would have preferred us to put the game to bed earlier.”
Forcing errors, creating goals:
“We had certain triggers for when we wanted to press them (Glory) in certain areas.
“So, when we got it right, we pinched the ball off them and created opportunities.
“When we didn’t get it right, we then had to defend quite deep in our own area.
“We’re putting the balls in the areas that we want them to go into, it’s just about getting the timing right from the players and, when the opportunity arises, just having that little bit of composure to finish it.
“I’ve always said, it’s very difficult to score goals.
“It’s something that we’re working extremely hard on.
“We’ve got Damian Mori who’s been working non-stop with our attacking players to make it more repeatable for their finishing.
“It will take time and, hopefully, we’ll start to see the good work that he’s been putting in with the group.”
Whacky weather impacting performance:
“I think I think both sets of players struggled with the with the humid conditions and the pitch as well.
“The pitch was a little bit slow, which made it difficult.
“It’s surprising (considering) the rain we had today and then the pitch was so dry.
“It (the weather) was energy-sapping today and there were a lot of transitions today.
“There was a lot of long runs from both teams, going from box to box.
“So that takes a lot of energy out as well.”
Offensive changes:
“The reason we’ve got Ben (Halloran) playing more central at the moment is because we want a little bit more speed from that line in there.
“Ben has that and he’s got the quality with his technique as well.
“Then Harry (Van der Saag) brings out the aggressive running that he has and he’s been excellent in those last few games playing in an usual role for him.
“We’ve brought him in as a right back, but he’s taken to that wing position very well.”
