Viktoria Plzeň coach Miroslav Koubek answers journalists after the game against Sparta.

How satisfied are you with the team´s performance?

Sparta created more final situations. They showed their quality in pressing, transition to attack. Sparta is a year ahead of us in development. We are rebuilding the team both systemically and in terms of personnel, and it will take time for us to enter the game better, for example, and not like today. In the beginning of the game we lacked quality, we lacked better movement and courage. Especially the passing was not good, Sparta has a great pressing on the ball and our young stoppers are probably not used to it yet. We were playing too many long balls, so I had to send Tomas Chorý there to strengthen the front.

Then you got into the game...

The development was such that it was good, then we got into the game and I think we had a good passage of play in the last 15 minutes of the first half, we equalised. The big mistake was that we got a goal after that equalizer to make it 2-1. We should have held on to that, there was a failure to do the job that was clearly set in that game situation and we paid the penalty for that. We finished the half well and in the second half we created an optical superiority, but Sparta actively guarded that lead. After our turnovers, they had good transitions into attack, but we couldn´t get into the penalty area, into chances, because their defence was working well. The opponent had 4-5 goal breaks, which they didn´t finish and Jindra Stanek held us. There Sparta could have decided 3:1, and when I sum it all up, it is clear that they deservedly won.

You changed quite early, what was the reason? 

They were betting on Sparta playing with two midfielders and that we would be outnumbered in certain phases. It was nothing against Ibra. One had to go out and when we kicked it, Chorý went in. We thought we´d be more on the ball and give them more trouble in the back line. 

It was nice football and it wasn´t a rout, don´t you agree? 

I agree, football should be heading in that game direction, not making it wrestling or MMA. That´s not our philosophy. 

Didn´t you see that shot by Lukas Kalvach in the goal?

I didn´t see it because it didn´t fall there, but I wished I could have seen it there and I didn´t get that wish. I had my glasses polished for it.