Carl Veart spoke to the media after Adelaide United’s heartbreaking 5-4 defeat to Macarthur FC in a chaotic, high-scoring match at Coopers Stadium on Friday night.
Veart on the 5-4 loss…
“It’s quite difficult to concede five goals at home, and there’s no way to look at it other than saying it’s not good enough. But the boys gave everything tonight. You can’t ask for more than that. To concede two early goals and show the response they did to get back in front before halftime, and to create some really good opportunities, we deserved more from the game than what we got. The players worked extremely hard, but some of the mistakes we made were costly. It’s hard to take.”
Veart on playing out from the back and the mistakes that were made…
“We worked on their high press and planned to play over it. We did quite a bit of work on that, but ultimately, the players make those decisions in the moment. They don’t purposely make mistakes. We want to play an entertaining brand of football, but sometimes you have to bypass a line when the opposition is pressing high. That’s something we need to be smarter about.”
Veart on game management and controlling the tempo…
“At times, when we got back to 4-4, that was an opportunity for us to just take a breather and regain control. We didn’t have to force or rush to get another goal, but we left ourselves open. That’s something we need to improve, especially with our younger players who are still learning. As long as they take lessons from these moments, we’ll keep moving forward.”
Veart on Ayoubi’s performance after being recalled…
“That’s exactly what we wanted from Austin. We needed more creativity and more chances in attack, and he delivered that. Last week, we didn’t create enough, so he came in and took his opportunity. That’s all we can ask from players—to work hard and perform when given their chance.”
Veart on Harry’s continued rise in the squad…
“Harry has been excellent in his starts. He’s a very young player and not naturally a defender—he’s more of an attacking player—but he’s adapting well. You saw glimpses of that tonight with some of his crossing. His development has been really pleasing.”
Veart on defensive struggles creeping back in…
“We need to be stronger at the back. At times, we make it too easy for teams to score. That’s something we worked on a lot in pre-season and early in the year, but it has slipped a little. We have some time now to refocus and ensure we’re harder to score against.”
Veart on using the international break to reset…
“It’s important for the players to have a bit of a break and freshen up mentally. The last month and a half has been up and down, so they need to refresh before our final stretch. We’ve got five or six big games left, and we’ll be working hard to tighten our defensive structures so we’re ready for that last push.”
Veart on the upcoming clash against Melbourne Victory…
“Every game is a final at this stage of the season. Every team is pushing for a top-six finish, just like overseas clubs push for European spots. We’ve done excellent work to put ourselves in a good position, and we can’t lose sight of that. The players have had a great season, and now they’ve got one last push to reward themselves for that effort.”
