Lucescu: We did not make the most of our perfect moments against Al Hilal and we were missing something important
"Al Sadd are going through a difficult period after the international break"
Razvan Lucescu didn't hide his frustration after Al Sadd went down 2-0 at home to Al Hilal on Tuesday in the second round of the AFC Champions League Elite league phase.
The Romanian insisted his players had performed well, though. All that was missing, he said, was "luck and good finishing with the final touch".
Speaking at the post-match press conference, as reported by the Asharq Al-Awsat account on X, Lucescu said: "I saw my team on the pitch working hard and diligently, playing toe to toe with their opponent face to face and with great courage, creating important and dangerous chances, but unfortunately we did not make the most of those moments."
Emotions before the clash: praise for Al Hilal
Asked whether the meeting with Al Hilal, the club he previously coached, carried any special feelings for him, Lucescu replied: "When we are on the pitch and before we prepare for the match, we do not think about such feelings or memories. Those memories remain in our minds."
He went on: "I am fully aware of how important that era was, but when we enter the atmosphere of the match, the feelings are confined only to how we prepare and get ready for the game."
The Romanian coach had warm words for Al Hilal's physical output and organisation. "I believe that teams on the pitch have their own style of play, and they have a plan, organisation, counter-attacks and their own momentum. I saw in front of me a team entering the game with great motivation, with many players capable of running and covering spaces, so they were not affected by the temperatures."
He added: "Sometimes you may be affected by the weather conditions and at other times you are not, and that depends entirely on how much motivation you have."
A transitional period after the break
Lucescu pointed out that Al Sadd are going through a difficult phase after the long break, explaining: "We too are going through a strange period after this long break, especially with some players returning from injury and not yet having reached their peak physical readiness."
"Practically speaking, we are now relaunching the work and effort we put in during the summer preparation period, but under different circumstances this time," he added.
Results, the Al Sadd boss insisted, come from the pitch rather than the analysis room. "Matches are always decided out on the green rectangle. What I have felt and seen from our team is high spirit and strong motivation. We have only lacked luck or good finishing in the final touch, because the effort the players put in on the pitch was very good in those moments."
The Romanian signed off with a call to arms: "In these times, we lack momentum and for circumstances to run in our favour, and for us to stop conceding goals from the first mistake we make. Faced with such situations and circumstances, all we can do is react strongly, stand up and fight on the pitch."
