Speaking after Kazakhstan's 4-0 defeat to Austria in the UEFA Nations League, Stanislav Cherchesov, the head coach of the Kazakhstan national football team, offered his thoughts on the match.
– I’m more pleased with this game than with the one against Slovenia. We created better combinations and showed more tactical awareness. Unfortunately, three of the goals we conceded came from our own errors, and at this level, mistakes are always punished," Cherchesov explained. "The intensity in these international matches is significantly higher than what we're used to in our domestic league. We managed to keep pace in the first half and made substitutions after the break to try to maintain that level, but our mistakes proved costly. Our immediate focus now is on recovery and preparation for the next fixture. On a positive note, I'm pleased that several players earned their first international caps today. We're facing multiple challenges simultaneously – developing the team, identifying new talent, and trying to get results. It's a difficult balancing act, especially in this division of the Nations League.
- There were many substitutions in the second half. Was this an experimental move, or were you looking ahead to the Slovenia match and managing players' workload?
– This wasn't an experiment. These decisions were based on our assessment of each player's condition. We need to effectively manage our resources to maintain our energy levels for the next game. 'm pleased with the performances of Astanov and Islamkhan. Darabayev also impressed after coming back from his lengthy absence. While the Nations League has effectively replaced friendlies in the calendar, we're treating these matches as valuable preparation for the World Cup qualifying campaign.
– The team played with a back four today for the first time in quite a while. Is this a formation you're planning to stick with?
– Yes, I plan to continue with the four-defender formation. It's crucial that we find the right balance between defense and attack. With five defenders, Kazakhstan conceded five goals to Greece and subsequently lost to Armenia and Azerbaijan. We must acknowledge Austria's strong performance; they demonstrated their caliber at the European Championship. We'll continue refining our strategy. Relying on five defenders has proven to be a dead-end approach, making us ineffective in both attack and defense.
– No goals scored in three matches - is this our true level or just a temporary setback?
– We're playing in a different division than we were two years ago. I wouldn't say this reflects our true level. We created decent opportunities but failed to deliver the final pass or shot. As strange as it may sound, I saw a slightly different game today compared to the first two matches. In those matches, nothing connected up front, but today we had some promising attacking sequences. Islamkhan's return gave us a boost in the first half. We need to be more efficient with our chances. I'll show the footage to the players tomorrow - there are things you miss in the heat of the moment. I believe they’ll be quite surprised to see the mistakes they made in seemingly simple situations. When you give away possession without being pressed by the opponent, you're essentially inviting pressure and missing the chance to make them defend.
This isn't criticism—we were up against a strong team on their turf. Although the result is disappointing, we must treat it as a learning opportunity. The players can now measure themselves against this caliber of opposition, which makes my job easier as a coach. Facing opponents who are technically and tactically superior is how you improve. The key is to have more matches like this one—it’s essential for reaching the next level.
