ALEX GREENWOOD
On how the squad are feeling after the match against Haiti:
“There are a few tired legs and tired eyes this morning. But after a win everyone’s happy and we’re just glad we’ve had the first game now as there was a long build up to it. We just wanted to get the first game done.”
On the penalty goal:
“Georgia had massive composure to step up and take two penalties. It was good to get the goal and we kicked on from there. Haiti were a tough team to play against, they caused us some problems at times, but I thought we were professional in our performance.”
On the 1-0 win:
“It’s important not to get carried away with the first game. If we look back to the EUROs, we won our opening game 1-0 and it probably wasn’t our best performance of the tournament. I think with the first game, the most important thing is just to get the win. We were creating chances and we wanted to stop them creating chances but it’s tournament football, you have to adapt against the teams you play against.”
On the test that Haiti presented:
“Their ranking doesn’t do them justice. I think they’re going to be a threat to other teams throughout the tournament. Fair play to them, they have some really good individuals, some powerful and strong players. We don’t play against teams in that region very often. But I think it was really good preparation for us, a good challenge.”
On takeaways from the game:
“We’ll look back on the game and the chances we created where we could have done a little bit better. We hold ourselves to such a high standard so we will come away from the game thinking we can do this better or that better. And it is important we look at that, but as the tournament goes on and things click in training those things will come together, so we’re not getting too carried away, we’re just looking at the small details.”
On Mary Earps’ performance:
“She’s so focused and there was a large part of the game where Mary didn’t have much to do. She has to stay focused and prepared for the moments where she is called upon. Yesterday she proved what a top-class goalkeeper she is with two massively important saves. With her routine before the game and how she prepares, she’s as serious as she looks on the pitch. I have no doubt when someone goes one-on-one with Mary, she’ll pull out the save.”
On kids being able to watch the games in the mornings back home:
“They could be in this team in the future and speaking about their memories. It’s really important they get to watch the games and access it. I’ve got nieces and nephews at home who will be sat up in the morning watching us, so it’s brilliant.”
On prep for Denmark:
“Same as always, we’ll prepare as we always do. We’ll train and recover over the next few days. We’ll then travel to Sydney which isn’t too far from where we’re based anyway and get ready for Denmark.”
