Kozuch awaits Red Star: "Our ambitions are higher than that"
The turnaround at halftime ("we knew they would fall off their feet"), the parting with Kangwa ("we are building a team, it's no secret we will try to strengthen") and the meeting against the Serbian champion: "It will be difficult but we will come brave". Ran Kozuch summarizes Hapoel Be'er Sheva's big win over Vikingur, and is ready for the next challenge.
It was very difficult, but Hapoel Be'er Sheva managed yesterday (Wednesday) to erase a 2:1 deficit from the first game against Vikingur, with a 2:0 win that advanced them to the third qualifying round of the Champions League, where they will meet Red Star Belgrade. Either way, the Premier League champion has secured participation in a European league stage of one kind or another, following the awakening in the second half and the goals by Zahi Ahmed (65th minute) and Amir Ganah (80th minute).
From here on it is going to be harder — both because of the formidable opponent in the next stage, and because Be'er Sheva parted ways tonight with its biggest star Kings Kangwa, who is leaving for Panathinaikos.
"The players promised Hapoel Be'er Sheva a European campaign after a long, long time," said Kozuch. "I am so happy for the club, first of all for the club. Then for the people we all love, Tu B'Av, so first of all for my wife who supports, and thanks to the wives of all the players. Tu B'Av, so we will continue to the end."
On the pressure around the team after the disappointing start to the season: "There is talk all the time. We are concentrating on producing football, and producing football as good as we can. You have to understand, we played against an excellent opponent in the 15th, 16th, or 17th round of their league, and it is always difficult.
Just a small anecdote: in the previous game our team did more than 122 kilometers. These are numbers we do once or twice a season, in the middle of the season or towards the end of the season, and we are in the preparation stage.
And in the meantime, unfortunately, we are also building the team, because there are many things that need to be changed and improved. A large part of them is against our will, and we are working very, very, very hard — from the management, through my staff — to make Hapoel Be'er Sheva a good team, and there will be a good team.
With all this, there is the difficulty and pressure to bring Hapoel Be'er Sheva one more stage forward. We talked about this a lot in the last two years, and thank God we did it. I am very, very proud of my players, they went through very, very difficult days. I also gave them quite a bit, I am very, very, very proud of them for the performance today, and congratulations on the group stage."
On the improvement in the second half: "I think that at halftime I mainly calmed them down, because the Icelanders started again with a bit of strong pressure, and that was our game plan. We knew that as time went on — in the weather, on the grass — they would fall off their feet. And I think we saw that in the second half.
So all I did at halftime was to calm the guys down, get them back into our game principles, ask them to do the things we talked about at the beginning of the game. We knew we would get them low, we knew we would create situations through the sides, we knew we had players on the bench who could decide the game for us, and I am happy that it happened."
On the parting with Kangwa: "It's no secret, we will try to strengthen. And I am very happy about the Conference group stage, but our ambitions are higher than that. It won't be simple, it will be difficult against excellent teams — we will meet Red Star, but in football everything can happen. We will be there, we will fight, we will be brave, we will play our football, and with the help of the Holy One, blessed be He, He is preparing more good surprises for us. That is what we aspire to."
On the crowd's support: "First of all, it contributed a lot to us. The fans were also a bit nervous at the beginning, but that's understandable. The crowd — you have to understand, and I'm saying this not for the first time — we need support. The players need great support, the staff needs great support, I need great support.
We are strong, we know what we need to do, but in the end this family of Hapoel Be'er Sheva is not just a coach, staff, players and Alona — it's everyone together. And the fans, you know what? The fans are before everything. Like in every team and certainly in Hapoel Be'er Sheva. The fans need to understand this, there is a great responsibility on the fans.
I am happy that 200 arrived today and I hope that in the next game more will arrive, will support us, will encourage us even in the difficult moments. It is super important to us, and I am so happy that we managed to make them happy."
So can Hapoel Be'er Sheva qualify for the Champions League? Kozuch: "It starts with one game against Red Star, and from there you have to dream. But to dream you have to work very, very, very, very hard. We will start with hard work, and then whatever the Holy One, blessed be He, gives us, we will say thank you."
