Lukáš Hrádecký: "We didn’t get all the basics right"

He did everything he could to help his team come away with a result against Paris FC. Making seven saves, including a superb stop to deny Lassine Sinayoko shortly before the opening goal, Lukáš Hrádecký eventually succumbed to the hosts’ numerous chances (3-1). Understandably disappointed, the Finnish goalkeeper spoke to journalists in the mixed zone after the match. Here are some excerpts.

Good evening, Lukáš. How do you feel after that match?

Paris FC were very good today, but we should have been better in every area. They could have scored five, six or seven goals, even though we managed to pull one back. Overall, it was almost frightening to see, and I think we were far too far off their level. We really need to get back to work, rediscover our defensive solidity and be more dangerous going forward. It is a huge disappointment because this was a six-pointer, and Paris are now two points ahead of us. We haven’t won in Ligue 1 since the international break, which is a little worrying, but we will try to bounce back and rediscover the things we did so well at the start of the season. Now it’s about finding a way out of this situation.

What was missing tonight?

We didn’t get all the basics right and lost our strengths. I don’t want to look at the statistics, but I think Paris FC beat us in every department and were the more dangerous side. We played their game and made them look even better, although they also put in a very good performance.

Is this the first time this season you have felt concerned?

This season, yes, but I’m not really worried. They were simply better today, but we have shown that we can do good things since the start of the season. This is a reality check, but I think they played the same kind of football as PSG and were much better than us. I don’t know what has changed since the beginning of the season, but everyone needs to take a look at themselves and start doing better from tomorrow onwards.

Have you spoken to each other in the dressing room?

No, no, it’s still too fresh and emotions are running too high. We’ll start analysing things at the beginning of the week. It’s a good thing that we have a Conference League match on Thursday, which could give us the chance to create opportunities and, hopefully, win in the league next Sunday against Le Mans.

What needs to change for the next match?

A lot of things… We mustn’t concede three goals or allow so many chances. We then need to be much sharper, win our duels and complete our passes. Those are the basics. I don’t think a single player did what was required today. That’s the reality. The team has the quality to play against this kind of opposition; we have already shown that. Is it a question of form or just a temporary problem? I don’t know, but today our level simply wasn’t good enough to win a football match. I do think the team is better than last season, but now the experienced players in the dressing room need to speak up more and demand more from everyone…

Do you think the team is lacking creativity?

Creativity comes when you start winning your duels. When you get the basics right, you have a chance, but that wasn’t the case today. That’s where creativity starts, so I think there were other, more important problems today. The key is to get the simple things right, win your duels, and then creativity and quality will come back, allowing us to play football again.