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Hungary head coach Marco Rossi was critical of his side’s performance on Thursday, despite earning a 1-0 win over Armenia, which sets up an intriguing final round of fixtures in Group F.
Barnabas Varga’s first-half strike handed Hungary a 1-0 win, with Liverpool duo Dominik Szoboszlai and Milos Kerkez both starting. The latter put in a solid display at left-back, while Szoboszlai set up the winning goal and became the youngest player in his country’s history to reach 60 caps.
The victory sets up a fascinating final group game after the Republic of Ireland beat Portugal 2-0 on a night Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off in Dublin.
As for Hungary, it started on the front foot against Armenia and dominated the first half. However, it was a different story after the break, with the hosts rallying in Yerevan.
A gutsy second-half display forced Hungary to defend deep and hold on to earn a crucial victory.
Speaking after the game, Rossi admitted he was far from impressed. “It’s clear, you can’t attack for 90 minutes, but our second half was perhaps the worst in the World Cup qualifying series, so a 1-0 result is acceptable,” said the Hungary coach.
“I don’t want to blame my players for what happened; everyone has their own responsibility, but it’s primarily mine for what kind of performance we provide.
“We have to analyse what we saw, because such a difference in attitude between two halves cannot occur.
“In the first half, we played as we planned, we had opportunities to double our lead, but what happened to my team after the turnaround, I don’t know, everything changed,” Rossi added.
“Armenia played much better than us in the second half, but they created the two biggest chances from our mistakes.
“In parallel with our opponent’s improvement, we didn’t find the solution to their organization and aggressiveness, which was still there in the first half.”
The win in Armenia leaves Hungary on eight points heading into Sunday’s crucial concluding round of matches.
Portugal leads the way on 10 points, with Ireland in third on seven. That means a Hungary win in Budapest over Ireland, coupled with a Portuguese defeat against Armenia, would see Szoboszlai, Kerkez and co top Group F.
However, if Ireland wins, Hungary will finish third and miss out on an automatic playoff spot. A draw would ensure the Hungarians take second place and guarantee a playoff place.
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