Maccabi Tel Aviv coach Slavisa Jokanovic and Avi Rikan spoke to the press prior to their final practice before their UEFA Champions League Playoff Round first-leg match against Basel in Switzerland tomorrow night at 21:45 Israel Time.
Slavisa Jokanovic fielded questions from the Israel and local Swiss press:
We are working together and we will play good football tomorrow. Sometimes we haven't played well but this is a different competition and I'm sure Maccabi will be 100% ready for the match tomorrow and for the second leg next week. Many people believe we can't do anything here in Basel, but I believe we can and we will show some good qualities here tomorrow night.
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What do you expect from Basel tomorrow?
We must be ready in case Basel will come and attempt to dominate certain areas of the game but we must be clever and make sure we capitalize on our chances. We can come away with a good result away and then go home to our Stadium with an excellent chance to pass this test. Remember the match is at least 180 minutes over two games.
Has the last few match results affected the club?
Sometimes we are very competitive and play very well and now we are in somewhat the same position after the first Plzen game. I know that our supporters believe in us and this is our chance to play in the Champions League group stages, but now is not the time to surrender. I am here to fight for a chance to play in the Champions League. We must respect Basel, but also respect ourselves.
What have you been doing to better organize the defense?
I am working on some things with the defense and make sure we are better on set pieces. We made some corrections during the Plzen match with these things but I expect that we will be better tomorrow.
What are your final thoughts right before heading into the Playoff matches?
Maccabi Tel Aviv have not arrived here for a holiday. I believe in my team and I'm an optimist. We will work hard to make it into the Champions League.
We must be very proud of the club to have the chance to play in the Champions League and it's one of the most amazing competitions in the world. These can be very important days ahead of us.
Comments by Avi Rikan:
I didn't think I'd be back in Switzerland so fast after leaving Zurich but here I am. Basel changed a bit from last season but they have stayed very strong. We have a lot of respect for them and we have a chance to make it to the Champions League.
What have you done to change the way of play to get a good result?
What happened in the last two games happened and we are moving forward. Our training staff has prepared us well and we are looking ahead to the match tomorrow. We have a lot of respect for Basel and we will work hard on the pitch.
Final thoughts?
This is a great challenge for us and we want to go to the groups stages so I'd rather here the Champions League anthem then and not just the next two matches.
