In the third matchday of the UEFA Nations League A, the Netherlands drew 2-2 with Greece away from home. After the match, Dutch defender Sergino Dumfries was interviewed by ESPN.

Did you feel it was a bit chaotic out there, and still is now?

Haha, I can see you felt the same way. (laughs) It definitely wasn't... it was a bit loud and chaotic out there, yes.

You even went out there and spoke to them a moment ago.

The atmosphere was still very respectful. I think you're also trying to do post-match interviews, and it must be difficult if someone's shouting nearby and disrupting the flow, right?

I'm glad you spoke up and reminded them. But back to the match itself: the performance wasn't always smooth and beautiful.

No, it wasn't at all what we had planned. Our first-half performance was well below standard, and those goals conceded should never have happened. I have to take responsibility for the first goal conceded; Jurrien Timber and I are both at fault. In that situation, there needs to be an understanding and coordination between us, but we didn't execute it properly, which is absolutely a mistake we shouldn't make.

Was it really a collective defensive problem? Was it an eagerness to press too much, or what was the issue?

No, it was actually the most basic defensive principle: one player presses, and the other drops to cover. At that moment, there was simply a communication breakdown. We should never make such mistakes. But we all know that. Our first-half performance was completely below par, but thankfully we made good adjustments in the second half.

Was part of the reason for the poor first-half performance also a lack of desire to win, or rather the "fighting spirit and passion" that everyone's been discussing this week?

I don't think so. I think everyone has a strong desire to win, and everyone's mentality and attitude are correct. But in football, sometimes it's hard to explain why things happen the way they do. Of course, you can always point out that we shouldn't make such errors.

This isn't the first time this has happened, right?

It's certainly not the first time, but I think it happens to other teams as well. I'm not trying to blame anyone else, I mean... it's football, these things are inevitable. Sometimes in the first half, you're always one step behind, and you can't help but think: "Damn, the gaps in our defense are growing, and the opponent has scored twice." It's really difficult to turn things around immediately in the first half.

But you did turn things around in the second half. Was that also due to the substitutions?

Of course, the bench brought a lot of energy, and we also made some tactical adjustments. However, that doesn't mean the players who started in the first half played poorly; rather, our entire team underperformed in the first half. Fortunately, during halftime, everyone had time to reflect calmly, and we managed to regroup in the second half. In the first half, you could clearly feel the team's inability to change course, and that feeling was really very uncomfortable. But, as you saw, we responded very positively in the second half.

Have you ever experienced a situation where you scored two goals in a single match, but neither of them counted in the final statistics?

I think so. I can't remember exactly when, but that first goal today definitely should have counted. I've discussed this with several people. The opposing player controlled the ball, which already constituted a new phase of play. The ball was completely under his control; he could have cleared it directly, but he didn't, and then I intercepted and scored. That was absolutely a valid goal; it was very unfair for it to be disallowed.

Yes, the rules state, and I just checked specifically: a player in an offside position — which was you in this attack — if they gain possession after the opponent deliberately plays the ball, then the offside in that context is no longer valid. And the opponent controlled the ball and took a step, which was clearly an intentional play.

Exactly! So it was a perfectly valid goal, right?

That's correct.

Exactly, I think so too. But at that moment, the Italian referee... I even tried to argue with him in Italian, but he said...

What did he say?

He said it was a new rule. But I told him: "The opposing player clearly controlled the ball firmly, and he had complete control over it; he could have kicked it however he wanted. He mishandled it himself, and I intercepted and scored. That was absolutely a 100% valid goal." But the goal was still disallowed, and I just have to accept it...

And the second goal?

I think that one was definitely offside. Offside is offside, but...

But you were protesting vigorously with your finger pointed at the referee!

Because I wanted him to reconsider the decision to disallow my first goal! On the pitch, you always have to try... you always want to influence the referee's decision. But in all fairness, the first goal was definitely not offside, and the second goal was indeed offside.

The final score was 2-2. A terrible first half, a better second half. Do you have one more match to play?

Yes, we definitely need to give everything we have. Our goal, of course, is to win the next match. Playing at home in Eindhoven is great. We need to prove that the poor first-half performance was just a momentary lapse, and we've learned from it.

So the main objective now is to prove that was just an anomaly?

Exactly, yes, absolutely.

Traduzido por IA.

O site do AF já está online! Acesse notícias completas, comentários, detalhes de partidas e estatísticas no seu computador. Acesse: www.allfootballapp.com