Faes: “Young people gain a lot of confidence”
Wout Faes again operated in the heart of defense. While he was almost never allowed to play under Roberto Martinez, he is now a permanent fixture. “It’s great to get so much confidence from the trainer. Though I’m not the only one who enjoys it. Domenico Tedesco gives a lot of opportunities to young players and that gives a lot of confidence.”
“We now have 7 out of 9 in our qualifying group and can be quite happy after tougher opponents like Austria and Sweden. There was a lot of hassle the last few days and that was haunting in our heads, but we stayed focused on the field. At the ideal time whatever Romelu is there to help us.”
Sels: “I was cut off from the fuss”
How did Matz Sels experience the noisy run-up to his starting place? “I tried to shut myself off from the fuss. I knew on Sunday that my chance would come, so I tried to prepare myself as best as possible. I trained well. I couldn’t do more. I have shown that they can count on me in the next games. Because I haven’t played that often for the national team. You have to build up credit.”
“I haven’t had much work. It was more foot play today. But those are the toughest matches, because you have to stay focused for that one ball that can come. The first half was not easy for us. We didn’t start well. But then Romelu made the difference. That has given us a lot of breath and peace. I am happy with the win and with the zero.”
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Vertonghen: “Thibaut has a great character”
“We didn’t have it easy in the first half”, said ancien Jan Vertonghen. “Estonia had a difficult system to play against. We wanted to exploit one-on-one situations. This is always a difficult move. Not many teams come here to win 0-3. This is a good result for us.”
For Super Jan it was the first game in two months. He ended up playing for an hour. “That was pre-arranged. I had some doubts at first, because I had not participated in many group training sessions. The first ten minutes were also quite spicy. Sometimes I had to think a bit. But after that I came through better and we also held the ball better.”
Vertonghen also spoke out about the fuss around Thibaut Courtois. “I have already said a lot about it. Reactions then go in all directions. I want to let it rest for now. It is best for everyone to think for themselves about what exactly happened and what reactions were given. It is good that there is now a period of rest. I hope all parties think about what happened and what was said. Then you have to wait until September. Fortunately, I don’t have to make any decisions, because that won’t be easy.”
Whether the door is closed for Courtois? “We don’t have the right to speak for Thibaut, so we certainly won’t. It is a young group that looks up very much to Thibaut and his record. He has a very great character. Now it’s up to the parties. There will be talk.”
Al-Dakhil: “This gives a lot of confidence”
“They were two fantastic games,” said a delighted Ameen Al-Dakhil, who replaced Vertonghen. “I made minutes in both games, so I can’t complain. This gives a lot of confidence.”
“I ended up in a fantastic group. They took good care of me. You feel right at home here. Everyone helps you with everything. You also get better at training every day.”
Al-Dakhil will move to the Premier League with Burnley next season. “Then the chance is of course even greater that I will be there next time. But I just have to keep working hard.”
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