CSKA head coach Markus Gisdol held a press conference ahead of his team’s away game against Panathinaikos in the third round of the league phase of the Conference League. The match between the two teams is on Thursday at 22:00, with “the Reds” facing one of the strongest teams in Greece.
The German coach commented on his team’s busy schedule and stressed that despite the difficult opponents and the short recovery time, CSKA must remain focused on the upcoming challenge.
“The schedule is really a little crazy. If you look at our Conference League schedule, we first played against the best team in France, then we had a difficult away game in Denmark, and now we face a visit to a very strong Panathinaikos. It’s a little strange. On the other hand, it’s a challenge because we can try to stand up to such opponents. We prepare in the same way, we are fully focused on the next match and we keep moving forward,” Gisdol said.
The coach added that the team had no reason to complain about the schedule, as participation in European competitions is desired by every club. He also placed particular emphasis on the need for the players to recover in time for yet another difficult match.
“The schedule is what it is. Levski also have a match. Every team wants to play in Europe, so we absolutely cannot complain. The next match is the most important thing. It is a major challenge for the players to recover and be ready for it,” the coach commented.
Gisdol revealed that Zwart could get playing time against the Greek side. In his view, CSKA must produce high-level football, similar to their performances against Monaco and Nordsjælland, to have a chance of achieving a positive result.
“We could see Zwart on the pitch. When you play against teams of this level, you cannot afford mistakes. We need a performance like the ones against Monaco and Nordsjælland to be successful. We have to make the most of our chances in order to leave with a positive result,” the coach stressed.
The German expressed his respect for Panathinaikos’ quality, noting that the opponents’ squad had undergone significant changes and effectively represented an almost entirely new team.
“Panathinaikos are at a very high level. They signed quite a few players and are now almost a new team, with a high level of individual quality. I know one of their players, whom I signed at Hamburger. I’ll be happy to see him, greet him and maintain our good relationship after the match. It would have been better if he played for our team,” Markus concluded.