Neestrup welcomes Friday clash against OB
F.C. Copenhagen take on OB on Friday night in a Superliga encounter in Parken Stadium, and head coach Jacob Neestrup is happy with the tight turnaround following Tuesday's 0-0 draw with Sparta Prague.
"It's sometimes better that there are only three days instead of seven days until the next match," says Neestrup, reflecting on the congested fixture schedule ahead of his team this August.
"Right now we have a fresh team that is in a really good rhythm and is enjoying close games, so we are perfectly fine playing every three to four days, and we are also looking forward to doing that in the coming months.
"We are starting the first and longest 'block' of six weeks with two games a week, and you kind of forget whether it is Monday, Wednesday or Sunday. We just like to play games, and once we are in that rhythm and at the same time feel that we are in a good place as a team, then I think it is actually an advantage that the games are so close.
"It is also a period of some uncertainty, where there is little time to prepare for our European opponents, and where some match dates are only determined late on."
Indeed, FCK head to Prague next week for the second leg of the UEFA Champions League third qualifying round with Sparta. The Lions have played two Saturday games in the Superliga to kick off the season due to uncertainty over European fixtures, and Friday's evening clash with OB has been pencilled in for some time.
"That's how it is when you play in Europe, so we can live with that just fine. Of course, our analysts are always looking a few weeks ahead and preparing for what can await us, but the players are good at taking one game at a time and only focusing on the next one that awaits us," says Neestrup
"I think that both this season and last season we have been very honest about the bad games we have had, even when we have won. There are of course also things in the Sparta match that we could have done differently, but on the whole I think that the players on the pitch gave us some really good chances to win that match by a single goal.
"That's why I'm still very satisfied with the way we played the match, and especially the last 20-25 minutes, when we put really, really good pressure on a good opponent."
FCK beat OB 7-0 in Parken when the two sides last met in March, but Neestrup isn't expecting anything like that scoreline come Friday.
"We've had close games against Lyngby and Vejle, and it can be close in all Superliga games. OB have many exciting players, and the team showed at Brøndby Stadium that on their best days they can play against anyone," says Neestrup.
"But the most important thing for us is that, as I said, we are in a good place and have delivered very well in the last two games. Of course, this will also be put to the test on Friday night, but if we look at the games against Randers and Sparta, we are very satisfied with the small number of chances we gave away, and very satisfied with the low number of collective errors across the team. We must of course eliminate some individual mistakes, and I am sure that we will probably get that too."