Kristian Mørch ahead of FCN: "Expecting an entertaining match"

Following a historic Wednesday night at Køge Idrætspark, another big challenge already awaits HB Køge Women on Saturday. FC Nordsjælland come to town in the A-Liga, and head coach Kristian Mørch is expecting another entertaining encounter.

There was both joy and relief at Køge Idrætspark on Wednesday night as HB Køge Women secured a place in the UEFA Women’s Champions League league phase with a 2-1 aggregate victory over PSV Eindhoven.

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Three days later, Kristian Mørch is still delighted with both the performance and the result.

“It was an absolutely fantastic experience! Both because of the result, but also because of the way we got there. It was a really, really strong performance from the entire team and everyone around the team, so it was a fantastic experience,” says the head coach.

However, the busy schedule leaves little time to dwell on Wednesday’s European triumph. On Saturday, attention turns back to the A-Liga as FC Nordsjælland visit Køge Idrætspark.

Expecting a strong FC Nordsjælland side

Kristian Mørch has had a particular eye on Saturday’s fixture for some time. FC Nordsjælland have been without several key players during the opening games of the season, but they are now back for the meeting with HB Køge Women.

“It’s a matchup I’ve been able to see coming for quite some time. I knew before the season started that Safi, Seri and Gamede would be unavailable for the first few games, but that they would be back when we faced them. It’s clear that FC Nordsjælland are a different team with those three than without them,” says Kristian Mørch, before continuing:

“They’ll be a top opponent, and as has always been the case when we’ve faced FC Nordsjælland over the past year or so, I’m expecting an entertaining game with plenty of tempo.”

Although the three returning players add extra quality to FC Nordsjælland, the head coach stresses that Saturday’s opponents have much more to offer.

“FC Nordsjælland’s structure allows those players to flourish. It’s not as though FC Nordsjælland can’t play football without the three of them. But you can also see the difference they’ve made. They’ve gone from being a team that really had to battle for things to a team that has been driving games and dominating their opponents. So it’s going to be an exciting match.”

We’ll need to come up with something new

According to Kristian Mørch, Wednesday’s performance against PSV Eindhoven was one of the best he has experienced with the team. And although the focus has now shifted back to the A-Liga, HB Køge Women can take several things from the Champions League encounter into Saturday’s match.

“It’s not a completely different game. PSV had adopted some of FC Nordsjælland’s playing concepts, so there will be some things we can take with us. But it’s still a game of its own,” says Kristian Mørch.

FC Nordsjælland were also in attendance at Køge Idrætspark on Wednesday night and therefore had the opportunity to see HB Køge Women’s performance first-hand.

“Nordsjælland were there watching the game, so they’ve also seen what we did. That means we’ll have to come up with something a little different as well.”

Exactly what that will be can be seen at Køge Idrætspark at 13:00 on Saturday. For those unable to make it to the stadium, the match will also be available to watch on TV 2 Play.