The bait was dangled but Slovenia's manager refused to bite. No, he did not want to discuss England's footballers; or how they had played in the tournament so far; or the spirit in their camp.
No, Matjaz Kek just wanted to concentrate on his team. “Our whole nation is together following our success, it's a big thing back home,” he reminded everyone. “They are very proud of us and we want to continue making them proud.”
There was, admittedly, a generous sentence for Fabio Capello, whom Kek described as a “big gentleman I have so much respect for him as a coach”, but otherwise he dealt smartly and efficiently with what the swollen English media pack threw at him. As a tactical blueprint for his team in Wednesday afternoon's game against England it was perfect.
However, in an interview in Ekipa newspaper, Kek is more revealing, telling a reporter, Andrej Miljkovic, that: “It's a do-or-die match for England, because it's a game they can't imagine not winning. Qualification was a goal for us, and now it's a wish, but nothing more than that, so maybe that is to our advantage.”
“My team has recovered from the 2-2 draw with the USA but there are still mixed emotions,” Kek also admits.
“My players will always know what happened last Friday but they have decided to put it behind them. The regret will be big if we don't qualify but, if we get through, it will be forgotten.” — © Guardian News and Media 2010
