FC RFS head coach Viktors Morozs did not sugarcoat his team’s 4–1 home loss to Malmö FF in the UEFA Champions League second qualifying round, admitting his players struggled to carry out the game plan and lacked the aggression needed to challenge the Swedish side.
“We knew how strong the opponent is. We knew it would be difficult,” Morozs said post-match. “But today, we didn’t show what we are capable of.”
RFS conceded early and were never really able to recover despite pulling one back in the first half. Allowing Malmö too much space and time meant that opponents could dictate the tempo. “In the first half, the opponent had a lot of space. We were too deep. There was nothing we could do,” Morozs admitted. “Yes, we understand that we can play better — but we didn’t use our core.”
A key area of concern for the coach was the second-ball battle, where Malmö consistently came out on top. “Challenges, second balls — they decide a lot,” Morozs said. “It’s about reaction, stamina, the feeling of the space. If we’re not close enough to the situation, we can’t win it.”
Despite the overall performance, Morozs praised Mor Talla’s effort. “I think Talla today was one of the best on the pitch. He did his job pretty well,” he said, though adding that the team could have made better use of his strengths. “We wanted him in more one-on-one situations, but maybe he didn’t feel confident or didn’t understand the situation correctly.”
Asked about the third goal that was awarded after a VAR offside review, Morozs acknowledged the protests from his coaching staff but deferred to the officials. “We saw it was offside, but VAR checked everything. It’s fair to say they saw it better.”
He also commented on the difficulties of containing Malmö’s movement in central areas. “They change positions very well — not just midfielders, also strikers. In those moments, they had an advantage. Against that, it’s not easy to work.”
Looking ahead to the second leg, Morozs struck a pragmatic tone. “The opponent is better than us — that’s clear. But we didn’t do everything to hurt them,” he said. “This is a good preparation for the next game. We just need to play as a team and help each other.”
