Adelaide United Head Coach Airton Andrioli and captain Craig Goodwin praised the Reds’ resilience and composure after a memorable away victory over BG Pathum United in Bangkok.
United responded strongly after falling behind, with Goodwin finding the equaliser before the Reds took control after the break to secure three valuable AFC Champions League Two points in difficult conditions.
Andrioli on the performance…
“I think we performed extremely well. I’m very proud of our players. We knew one of the biggest challenges was not just playing against a very good side, but also the conditions and the fact that we haven’t even started our season yet. Our last competitive match was about a month ago, so I think that shows a lot of character from the team. For me, we controlled large parts of the game, played the moments well and probably could have scored more. The performance speaks for itself and I’m extremely proud of the players tonight.”
Goodwin on responding after going behind…
“Definitely very happy individually to get the goal and get us back into the game, but like the boss said, it was a great performance and showed great resilience from the team. To go 1–0 down away from home in these conditions isn’t easy, especially with a young team that hasn’t experienced this environment before. It was a fantastic effort from the whole group and something we can build on.”
Andrioli on the half-time adjustments…
“We just made a couple of adjustments because I thought the game plan was already being executed well. We needed to be a little bit wiser in choosing the moments when we wanted to press and then do what we do best, which is keep possession of the ball and control the game. We said at half-time that in these conditions, if we have the ball, we don’t need to run as much. The players executed that really well in the second half, and all the credit goes to them.”
Goodwin on the performance as preparation for our first A-League match…
“Contextually, I think it was a great challenge for us to overcome. There was a period in the first half where they started to control possession and it was a real test to stay disciplined and tactically sound. We’re going to experience moments like that throughout the season where we can’t dominate every game, so we need to be able to absorb pressure and find our way back into matches. In the second half, we simplified things, kept possession better, made them move more and used the conditions to our advantage.”
Andrioli on the collective effort and Feyzo Kasumovic’s debut…
“We’re a club that values young players and that’s what we do. Feyzo getting his opportunity is part of that, but tonight was really about the collective. Watching from the outside, I had a lot of confidence in the second half that we were going to win the game – it was just about making the right decisions at the right moments. We played against a very difficult and experienced side, and I don’t think many teams will come here and get much joy. To travel this far and get a result like this gives us a lot of belief and confidence.”
Goodwin on captaining United back on the road in Asia…
“I’m always very proud to wear the armband and represent this club and our supporters. It’s been nearly a decade since Adelaide United played an away match in Asia, so to come here and get three points is a great moment for us. But it’s still only the beginning. We want to go far in this competition, so our performances need to stay at this level and continue improving because there are plenty of games still to come.”
Goodwin on the travelling supporters…
“A big thank you to the Adelaide fans who made the trip over and gave us that support. It means a lot to have them here. I’d also like to thank the BG Pathum supporters for their hospitality and the way they welcomed us. It’s not something you always experience when you travel, so we really appreciated that.”
