Tomáš Souček admitted there was a sense of frustration in the Czech Republic camp after ending their UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying contest against Moldova with only one point.
Despite the Czech Republic’s best efforts in Monday’s fixture at the Zimbru Stadium in Chișinău, midfielder Souček and his international teammates were forced to settle for a share of the points after a 0-0 draw.
The visitors largely dominated the proceedings in their second qualifying match of the international window, having secured an impressive 3-1 win over Poland in their first game.
However, while the Czech Republic registered 68 per cent of the possession and played 566 passes to Moldova’s 279, only three of their 16 attempted shots were on target.
"We feel disappointment for sure,” Souček told journalists after the game. “There was a lot of enthusiasm after the match with Poland. We got three points in that game and gave a great performance. We wanted to confirm it with another win against Moldova but it didn't work.
“Moldova also wanted to win. They had quality players. We kept a clean sheet and I have to praise our defence, because no opponent is easy in today’s game.
“We have to take a point. I think that other opponents will also have a hard time collecting points here against Moldova. They showed quality. Everyone in our team gave their best. We just lacked the quality in the final third against them.
“You need to create something and also to score the first goal. Then it opens up and it's much easier to score more. Even though we played better for the last 15 to 20 minutes and opened them up more, the chances still didn't come.”
It was the West Ham United midfielder who got arguably the best chance of the contest, as Souček latched onto a Tomáš Čvančara ball in added time in the first-half. The 28-year-old could only strike the woodwork, letting Moldova off the hook.
He continued “It's always difficult to play to our full when they have so many players in the box. We tried to put a lot of forwards in their area, but we couldn't get anything going.
“We had a few chances. I also had a great chance and I'm sorry that I didn't convert. With respect to a team like Moldova, you need to get far more chances and score a goal from it."
"Tomáš Čvančara played it well for me but I believed that I would get the ball even further forward. I was returning to it with my left foot, but it is necessary to hit it.
“I tried to take it down as much as possible, because I was a little behind. They were centimetres, but it made all the difference.”
While there is disappointment in the draw, the Czech Republic sit top of Group E in UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying after two games, and Souček feels four points is a decent return from the opening two fixtures.
With qualifiers away to the Faroe Islands and Montenegro to come in June for Souček and his international teammates, the West Ham man knows the side is in a decent position.
"Before the matches, four points would not be bad,” he added. “We believe that all the Czech fans will believe in us. We are first in the group, which is important.
“We need to learn from this match. We want to be the best and above all to advance to the Finals. That is our goal. We just made it a little more difficult for ourselves. We have two points less than we wanted after this match.
“We need as many points as possible in the summer against the Faroe Islands and in other matches, because we still have a good starting position.”
