Head coach Roger Schmidt confidently looked ahead to the double European encounter with Galatasaray on Tuesday at the Philips Stadium. If his team believes in its own ability, Schmidt is confident of a good outcome to the two-leg match starting Wednesday at 9 p.m. at Philips Stadium. "We are well prepared.
Good preparation
The coach said this in the press room of PSV's stadium shortly before the final training session leading up to the game. After a good three weeks of preparation, PSV will start immediately with a duel that could determine a large part of the course of the season. "I think we are ready for that," Schmidt spoke. "We ran a good preparation, did everything we could to be in shape now and create a good team spirit. Tomorrow is going to show whether that succeeded, but I have high hopes for that."
Respect for Galatasaray
About Galatasaray, he spoke with respect. The top Turkish club finished second in the league last year, but saw several defining players leave this summer. The Turks' last practice match was canceled at the last minute, so it is not entirely clear where Galatasaray currently stands. "But I think we are evenly matched," Schmidt said. "Galatasaray is an incredibly experienced team and in Fatih Terim they have a coach who has been through everything. Like us, they have had a somewhat different preparation than in recent years, but will certainly be well prepared to kick off the match."
Van Ginkel
Marco van Ginkel shares that opinion. At the press conference, it became clear that he will captain PSV next season and he sat next to Schmidt at the desk partly for that reason. "Galatasaray is an experienced team with good players, who last year were not for nothing but narrowly missed out on becoming champions. I expect them to be absolutely ready for the match," said Van Ginkel, who said the same about PSV. "The meters are definitely in the legs. We played some good practice games and were able to practice 11 against 11 a lot at training as well. We are ready."
Key
"The key to qualifying is in our own hands," Schmidt then continued. "We have to be convinced of our style of play. We have worked hard for it this preparation."