Slovakia Manager: England Only Wanted to Defend in Extra Time, We Deserved to Progress

In the round of 16 of the European Championship, Slovakia took an early lead through Skrancz, only for Bellingham to equalize in stoppage time, and Kane to score the winner in extra time, sending Slovakia out of the tournament with a 2-1 defeat. After the match, Slovakia’s manager, Karol Zánoň, spoke to the media.

Zánoň commented, “I must praise my players because they followed my instructions perfectly. We were a bit slack in the second half, but that’s expected against such a team. Then, in extra time, we defended one end well, kept them at bay, and I’m proud of how we defended as a team. Our goalkeeper also played some delay tactics, and I have to say that one minute of added time was too little. I’m definitely not satisfied with the referee, but we didn’t lose because of that. We lost due to a few moments of lack of concentration, but I’m incredibly proud of my team for playing our style of football, for delivering a fantastic match, and I believe the Slovak people are also proud of what we achieved.”

“We knew we couldn’t leave gaps behind our defense, as everyone knows Bellingham is a player of immense talent. We stayed compact and closed down the spaces well. We had chances in the first half to kill the game or at least go 2-0 up. It’s unfortunate; if we’d taken those opportunities, the outcome might have been different.”

“Seeing a strong team like England defend only in extra time shows how well we played. I’m proud of that. I’m really proud of my players; we should have been the ones advancing.”