Euro2016 – Bernd Storck: “We held our own”

The Hungarian national team coach feels that the warm-up match against Germany in Gelsenkirchen was a useful experience for his side as they prepare for the European Championship.

“We expected it would be a tough match but we didn’t pick Germany as our last opponents by chance” said Storck at the post-match press conference. “It was a useful match; I picked up upon a number of aspects of our game, and this will stand us in good stead before the Championship starts. For example, we still need to improve physically but we mustn’t forget that the players have put in some really hard work recently and this was noticeable in our play. I’m not dissatisfied with our performance; we defended well and prevented our opponents from creating too many chances. We also tried to attack; we had opportunities and we should have made the most of them. We played with bravery and this is something that will be important against Austria. We strove to keep possession and I have to say that in this area of our game we have advanced, we held our own against very strong opponents. The match was mentally and physically draining. Next week will consist of fine-tuning, and will be strictly aimed at the match against Austria”.

Replying to journalists, Storck said that he was happy with the performances of his players; he felt that Kleinheisler played with dynamism, was very direct and is an important player for the team. It made him happy that he joined such a strong team as Werder Bremen in the winter. Ádám Szalai put in a good shift, fought well and attempted to hold the ball up; he knows exactly how to play this kind of role and his experience will be needed at the European Championship.

Germany coach Joachim Löw, meanwhile, was happy with the win. “It’s always good to leave the pitch having won, but it could also be seen that we have much work ahead of us. We lacked sharpness and we’ll be addressing this. The Hungarian team made a good impression on me; many of their players stood out. They played with bravery; they tried to disrupt our game and vary the rhythm, albeit tactically they concentrated mainly on defending. It won’t be easy for the Hungarians against Austria or Iceland, but it will be a great experience for them to appear at a European Championship” said Löw.

Photo: MTI

Source: Press release – MLSZ