Victories will come with time, says Cyprus coach

By Nemanja Bjedov
CYPRUS and Albania played out a goalless draw in their final FIFA World Cup qualifIer at the GSP Stadium in Nicosia, with both sides having no chance of qualifying for the finals before the game began.
The stalemate saw Cyprus finish bottom of Group E with only one victory and five points from ten matches, while the Albanians ended up in fifth place, six points ahead of Cyprus.
“I am pleased with the effort of our players. We can definitely play better, but we had some good spells during the game and I believe that victories will come with time,” assessed national team caretaker coach Michalis Hadjipieris.
The visitors had the upper hand throughout the match but they failed to find a breakthrough in the first half despite several corner kicks.
They continued to press after the break, but were unable to beat Cypriot goalkeeper Antonis Giorgallides despite 14 attempts on goal.
The only first half chance for the home side was Pieros Soteriou’s header after a cross by Vincent Laban, but his effort did not trouble Albania’s keeper.
“What is very important is that we have tried until the final whistle and that we were a bit more focused.
“I am optimistic about the future of our national team as we have a lot of talent and some experienced quality players, but what we need is patience and faith in them,” concluded Hadjipieris.
The introduction of APOEL winger Efstathios Aloneftis in the second half inspired Cyprus to create more, but that was never going to be enough to claim the victory.
Cyprus managed to score only four goals during their qualifying campaign while they conceded 15. Aloneftis was the top scorer with two goals, away in Slovenia and at home against Norway, while Constantinos Makrides scored the winning goal against Iceland.
Laban, who spent the most time on the pitch over the ten matches, found the net in the 3-1 loss to Albania in the opening match.
The change of coach after eight matches of the campaign affected the Cypriots as Nikos Nioplias was replaced by then technical director Hadjipieris, who led the team from the bench in their final two matches against Iceland and Albania.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.