The Czech Republic Coach: ‘I Tip My Hat in Admiration to Ronaldo’

Ivan Hasek, the head coach of the Czech national team, reserved high praise for Cristiano Ronaldo after their match against Portugal in the EURO 2024 opening game early this morning (June 19, Vietnam time).

“It’s unbelievable how dangerous Cristiano is in every match, given his age at this stage of his career. He once again showed his intelligence, knowing how to be present in scoring opportunities.

I tip my hat in admiration to Cristiano; he is one of the greatest players of all time,” Hasek shared.

Aside from his admiration for Ronaldo, the coach also reflected on his team’s performance in the recent match.

“I have to admit it’s regrettable that we couldn’t complete our task. We caused a lot of difficulties for Portugal – one of the strongest teams in the world. We are all disappointed to concede in injury time. In four days, the Czech Republic will have a crucial match. We need to improve in many aspects.”

In the recent game, Hasek directed his players to defend deeply, minimizing the threat posed by Portugal’s top-notch players, while seeking direct passes to Patrik Schick whenever possible.

This tactical approach proved effective as the Czech Republic thwarted numerous attacking plays from their opponents, even taking the lead with a thunderous strike from Lukas Provod.

However, luck wasn’t on their side as just seven minutes later, Robin Hranac scored an own goal, leveling the score 1-1 for Portugal. In the second minute of injury time in the second half, Hranac’s fumble created an opportunity for substitute Francisco Conceicao to secure a 2-1 victory in a manner that couldn’t have been easier.

This was a match where Cristiano Ronaldo didn’t score, but CR7 played with full effort throughout the 90 minutes, creating dangerous scoring opportunities and providing two assists for his teammates.