The Macedonian national team suffered a 4-0 (2-0) defeat to Turkey in the friendly match played in Istanbul. Goce Sedloski’s side failed to stand up to the quality opposition, who routinely secured victory.
After the match, head coach Goce Sedloski took responsibility for the defeat and stressed that matches like these should serve as an important lesson for the national team.
„I congratulate the opponent on their deserved victory. Turkey are an excellent team with a large number of quality footballers. The defeat is my responsibility because I make the decisions and select the team. I gave all the players the opportunity to play, and we must learn lessons from matches like these.
We are aware that we have not scored in four matches already, and we are working to improve in that area. We played against exceptionally strong opponents, and every mistake we made was punished. That is precisely why we must carefully analyse what was not good and ensure that we do not repeat the same shortcomings.”.
We are creating a new team, and for some of the footballers this is a new experience. I expect everyone who receives a call-up to the national team to give their maximum and justify the trust placed in them. I have a clear picture of every player, and in the period ahead we will work on correcting our shortcomings and preparing for the challenges that await us,“ Sedloski said.
Macedonia’s next major test will be its participation in League B of the Nations League. The friendlies against Bosnia and Herzegovina and Turkey provided a good assessment of the level expected of the national team, given that we will face Switzerland, Scotland and Slovenia in the group.
