Marco Rossi almost quitted two years ago, but now he's not afraid of the team's fallback

Marco Rossi first talked about the factors that helped the Hungarian national team compete with the world's elite at the Europeans, and also mentioned what the team needs to improve on.

"We played without fear. We were good physically and tactically, but we are behind technically. However, I don't want to talk about our imperfections, but would like to thank the guys for their performance," said Marco Rossi who also talked about his experiences. "We've improved a lot both with the staff and the team. We have a team now. The guys are motivated. We want to play attacking football but have to improve in it. For my part, I see the opportunity of improving in every day. A good coach isn't good because he's good tactically, but because he can gradually improve together with his team."

He then talked about the team's defense.

"The reason why I like the 3-man defense system is that it's flexible. We can adjust it depending on our opponent, and the situation when we play more in defense or attack. But there's no specific system that you can definitely win with. Obviously, our opportunities were limited when playing with France and Portugal.”

Rossi shared his biggest European Championship experiences as well.

“Every moment of the European Championship is close to my heart. It was a short tournament: three games in eight days, but it was a great experience, and the fans' love was very touching. Football is said to be a game, but it moves emotions that make it much more than just a game.”

Rossi also shared the potential benefits of the European Championship, what it would take for the team to maintain the level seen at the tournament, and what he would change in hindsight.

“Our players can expect to be able to sign with a stronger league and if they can play more international matches, they will continue to improve. I'm not afraid that the team's attitude and fighting spirit could fall back. As long as I'm the head coach, there will be no fallbacks because I will only invite players who are physically strong, fast, motivated, and run a lot. Not everyone has to have technical skills similar to Dominik Szoboszlai if they meet the listed requirements. In Cardiff in 2019, I told myself that I was either quitting or changing my selection principles. I've changed it! I invite those who deserve to be on the national team because the national team is the property of the Hungarian people. If someone fights, he can count on my invitation. In some positions, I've now had my hands tied because of the missing players. For example, the left-back isn't Fiola's real position. However, I still consider, for example, Ádám Szalai an irreplaceable player. If I could make a change in hindsight, it would be the substitutions against Portugal.”

Nemzeti Sport Online also asked Rossi about his Hungarian language learning progress.

"I've started studying for a few months and then I had to put the language book aside because I had to focus on preparing for the European Championship. I'm going on vacation now because when I look in the mirror, I've aged two years in a couple of weeks. I'll resume it in the fall, but when I listen to you speaking Hungarian, I always feel like I don't know anything," Rossi replied.

The head coach also responded to rumors that he was being inquired about from Naples.

“I'm being inquired from Naples, from my family. There was nothing firm about football. As long as I receive the love I get from our fans, I want to stay here.”

Speaking about the continuation of the European Championship, the head coach said he considers France to be the winner of the tournament, while Italy is also another favorite.

The World Cup qualifiers this fall also came up and discussed what those experiences are that Hungary can use there.

"In the fall, I don't think I can count on Zsolt Kalmár among the injured ones. I hope I can on Dominik Szoboszlai, though. Professionally speaking, one of the most important experiences for the World Cup qualifiers is how to create space, how we can gain more space on the pitch. We've already done that well against the Germans," Rossi said.

Rossi then responded to Nemzeti Sport's question on András Schäfer as well.

“I know him from MTK. When he transferred to Genoa in Italy, they called me, and I had a positive opinion of him at that time already. Unfortunately, he didn't get that opportunity in Genoa in the senior team. As for his future, I would suggest him to leave Italy. I wouldn't even set my foot in there in his place, but I would recommend Germany or England to him.”

Translated by Vanda Orosz