Ferencvaros manager Borbely explains how they ‘outclassed’ Milan: “Prepared for every single eventuality”
By: Oliver Fisher
Ferencvaros head coach Balazs Borbely has admitted that he was prepared for everything AC Milan threw at his side.
Milan went into the game hoping for a victory after losing two of their first three in the Europa League, and what followed was their worst performance under Ruben Amorim. Lenny Joseph’s second-half brace was enough for Ferencvaros to emerge with three points that their performance merited.
It was a rotated Rossoneri side again, as has been the trend in Europe, but even when Christian Pulisic, Diego Moreira, Mario Gila and Luka Modric came on in the second half there was never the feeling that a comeback was happening.
Amorim made his thoughts clear after the game, while Balazs Borbely attended a press conference after what was a very memorable night for his side. They moved onto 12 points from 12 to begin their European campaign, and his words were relayed by MilanNews.
The fans chanted your name here at San Siro…
“I never thought things would turn out this way and that I would experience all this. Despite this, I want to send a message to our fans: they have been fantastic and we thank you so much for your support.
“I think all of Europe has heard about us, not just at home and in Hungary, so they can be proud too. Regarding your first question, I don’t even want to make too many comparisons between the two teams, about why we outclassed Milan.
“We had our game plan. We prepared for every single eventuality. We knew that Amorim often changes formations and that in the last five or six games they have played with both three and four-man defences.
“We were ready to react to both systems, to press in one way or another, to close down spaces and defend. We planned transitions for every eventuality, so I think the team came here prepared, motivated and with a healthy level of confidence, and this will show on the pitch.”
Are you satisfied with everything?
“We can be proud of both the result and the performance. I think it’s difficult to distinguish which was the best thing: both the result and the performance were excellent, so I couldn’t say, or at least I can’t decide, what we should be more proud of.
“At half-time, it was difficult to say anything because we were playing almost perfectly; you could say we put in an almost flawless performance for almost the entire half, not just in the first half.
“I just told the boys to keep playing the same way, there were only minor adjustments to be made, and I reiterated to them to keep working the same way. I knew, somehow I felt, that we would win.”
This match will be talked about even in 40-50 years…
“We probably still can’t fully grasp what happened. Maybe as time goes by, soon, when I think back on this match, the whole evening, the atmosphere, and our performance, I’ll feel incredibly emotional, but right now I’m still trying to fully experience this moment.”
You seemed more athletically ready than Milan…
“I joined the team around the beginning of July. I had an idea in mind, a vision of what my team should be like, and we’ve been working, and we continue to work constantly, since the summer, to ensure we can deliver a similar level of performance to today.
“Of course, there are less stellar days, and we always have mistakes that need to be corrected, that we need to fix, but we’re constantly working, training the players, and getting to know each other: the staff, the new arrivals, and the team.
“We always try to analyse day by day, identify mistakes, find what’s not working well, fix it, and move forward. And to improve every single day by at least 1%.”
What happened for the red card?
“I haven’t looked back at my comments yet to understand exactly what happened and why he got the red card, but I feel sorry for Yusuf, because he’s a good guy and I’m sure he didn’t want to weaken his team.
“He was probably unlucky with his elbow, hitting his opponent in the face, which is why he was sent off. Mistakes are part of the game, they happen. Our reaction was perfect, in my opinion. Everyone knew there were 15 minutes left, that we had to defend, sacrifice ourselves, and fight for each other.
“I think the last fifteen to twenty minutes, including injury time, played out exactly as they should. I think that even in those fifteen minutes, we managed to create two important chances with Zachariassen and Marquinhos.
“So, starting with a solid and big defence, we managed to pose a threat towards the opponent’s goal even when we were ten men short, and, if I remember correctly, we conceded very few opportunities to our opponents.”
