14.10.2026 00:06
Fenerbahçe head coach İsmail Kartal, stating that Aston Villa is a good team, said, "Tomorrow, by playing together disciplined, we will play in whatever way we need to play against this team. We want to fight in that way, do the best we can, and return to our country successfully. We are not thinking about losing points."
In the UEFA Champions League matchweek 2 game tomorrow, Fenerbahçe, who will be guests of England's representative Aston Villa, completed its preparations for the match and went to Birmingham. Technical Director İsmail Kartal held a press conference at Villa Park, where the match will be played, and made statements.
''WE WANT TO RETURN SUCCESSFULLY''
Kartal, stating that they had finished the preparations for the match, said, 'We traveled for 4.5 hours. We had our last training in Istanbul. We decided not to train here so that our players can rest better. Our team's energy and motivation are in very good condition. They have a technical director who deserves appreciation. We appreciate Emery, who has been able to consistently win European cups in recent years. A few of their important players transferred to other clubs at the start of the season. This year too, they have important players up front. Even though they have not been able to get good results in the league this year, they experienced the same problems last year, but then they caught very important runs and became title contenders, finishing the league in the top 4. We have a good team in front of us. Our players are in good condition. Tomorrow, by playing together in a disciplined way, we will play according to how we need to play against this team. We trained accordingly, we worked accordingly. We want to fight in that way, do the best we can, and return to our country successfully,' he said.
''WE ARE NOT THINKING ABOUT DROPPING POINTS''
Drawing attention to the fact that Aston Villa is a strong team, İsmail Kartal said, 'We are not thinking about dropping points. We are thinking of leaving with a good result. I trust my players and my team. Our opponent is a very serious and strong team. We cannot ignore that. We worked well and had good training sessions on how we need to play against such teams. We want to return having gotten what we want. If there is an unfavorable situation, it is again in our hands to make up for it. We will play Slavia Prague in Istanbul, then we will play Liverpool. We have matches ahead of us. We will continue on our way. We will take the field to win. We respect our opponent. They are a serious opponent, a tough team. They will play at home, in front of their fans. We are used to that. We will put forward our strategies to win. If we cannot win, we are thinking of leaving here with a draw,' he assessed.
''WE ARE TRYING TO MAINTAIN FAIRNESS''
The technical boss of the yellow-navy blues, emphasizing player rotation in the intense match schedule, said that they are planning both to keep the players physically ready and to protect team cohesion. Kartal spoke as follows: 'Our job is not just to make players play. We act by thinking match by match and planning these things. For example, in tomorrow's match, we will rest some players and play some players. We have to do this to minimize the risk of injury and because we play a match every 2-3 days with rested players. We also have to do these things to protect team cohesion, to be able to play everyone, and to be a team. There is also the issue of fairness within the team. We try to distribute fairness in the best way possible. To play every player when the place and time comes, both keeping them fit and keeping the team together. This is one of our most difficult and most important tasks,' he said.
LUKAKU'S STATUS
Answering the question about Romelu Lukaku's health condition, İsmail Kartal said, 'We came here as a full squad. We will talk tonight and tomorrow. We will also hold a meeting with the medical team and make a decision accordingly.'