Martinez says, ”When a coach is experienced, they have a plan for everything.”
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When Roberto Martinez was a young coach, winning the group at the World Cup was everything to him. That's why he used to use all kinds of tricks to be first in the group. Now, the same Martinez says, 'When a coach is experienced, a coach plans to do everything.'
He is participating in his third World Cup as Portugal's coach. Now, what he is starting to experience is that not all plans are as successful as they should be. Again, he is not alone in saying this. Norway's Stal Solbakken decided to rest some of his key players in Friday's Group 'E' match. This means he wants to protect his players from possible injuries as much as possible. That's why Norway did not take victory for granted when facing France. Otherwise, the team had the possibility of losing to a strong candidate for the World Cup title.
Erling Haaland was not in the starting lineup against France. Nine other players also got their first chance to start. That's why Norway lost 4-1 to France, but the coach has no regrets.
Now Norway's sole focus is on Tuesday's last-32 match against Ivory Coast. Solbakken says, "We had very little rest between the last and this match. We have to play the knockout stage again in the next few days. So it should not be surprising if the strategy is to rest key players."
Everyone wanted to see Haaland play. However, this was not the main issue for Norway. The coach adds, "Our goal is to go as far as possible in this World Cup. Our focus is only on that."
This defeat means that Norway will now face Ivory Coast in a match in Texas. Then, the winner of the other last-32 match between Brazil and Japan will come as a rival. France, who are undefeated so far, will face Sweden in the next match. Next up, probably Germany. According to coach Solbakken, Norway's key players have had at least one more day of rest after the match against France. Midfielder Patrick Berg says, "It's a smart strategy. Resting some key players also means that others have a chance to show their game against a bigger team."
The team that France fielded was almost as expected. France assistant coach Guy Stéphane also believes that there are no surprises in the Norwegian team's strategy. Martinez, who coached Belgium in the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, wants Portugal to defeat Colombia in the final match of Group 'K', but it is impossible to predict how Portugal will develop its own strategy.
Portugal is almost certain to play in the last 32. Martinez says, "There is also an advantage to winning all the games, because it maintains a positive spirit among the players. "If you want to win a competition like the World Cup, you have to be able to beat any opposing team." Colombia coach Nestor Lorenz, however, is not in favor of taking any risks.
