Ståle: - We must gamble a little bit

01/11 2010 22:21

Photo: Lars Rønbøg, Sportsagency.dk

The FCK squad trained on the PARKEN turf on Monday in preparation for Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League clash with FC Barcelona. Head coach Ståle Solbakken gave a press conference in the heart of the stadium, to discuss Copenhagen’s chances in the fourth round of Group D.

by Joe Short

- They are number one, we are number two, and the good thing is we will still be in the top two of the group at eleven o’clock tomorrow night. This is a good thing, as we can gamble a little bit. You have to do that to get a good result. We have never lost a Champions League game at home. We are proud of this statistic, and maintaining it tomorrow will be out greatest achievement.

Asked about his tactics for the upcoming match, Solbakken was honest in his reply:

- We have to improve in certain areas. We have to make small changes to our team to make big changes to the final score. The atmosphere will be something you have never seen before. I think it will be very noisy and every time there is a big Danish tackle the roof will lift off.

It was announced last week that UEFA had suspended Jose Pinto – the Barcelona goalkeeper – for two European matches, for ‘gross unsporting conduct’ following an incident involving Cesar Santin at the Nou Camp a fortnight ago. Asked about his opinions over the suspension, Solbakken made it clear it had no relevance both to the match tomorrow or in Spain:

- We didn’t lose because of Pinto. I don’t care about Pinto or his punishment. The victim was not FCK but was Santin, who was left to look a bit stupid.

Santin and N’Doye reflect on preparations
After Solbakken had concluded his interview, Santin himself discussed his recent ankle injury, and his hopes for the match ahead:

- On Monday I was training, but I have to see if I can play tomorrow. If I don’t feel 100% then I won’t play. The doctor said it was a pretty serious twist, but I am feeling better and better as time goes on so we will see how it goes tomorrow.

Dame N’Doye also gave his view of the game tomorrow, and the importance of home advantage at PARKEN:

- This is our home, and we are strong at home. You make sure you do everything not to lose the game. We have a job to do tomorrow, so we need to stay focussed.