Thomas Reis: “We Need to Be Aggressive”

Samsunspor head coach Thomas Reis stated that they aim to play aggressively by pressing their opponents. The German coach evaluated the upcoming match against Kasımpaşa, which will take place away on October 26, Saturday, during a press conference held at Nuri Asan Facilities.

Reis explained that Kasımpaşa is one of the better teams in the league, saying, “We will play against a strong opponent. They show this every week. We will face a team that knows what to do with the ball, runs a lot, presses well, and tries to play aggressively. It will be a tough match. We need to perform as we have so far against them. If we show the same performance as in previous matches, we will have a chance to earn points.”

Thomas Reis expressed that they have an aggressive playing philosophy, stating, “In Turkey, teams tend to fall back to hold on to the score when they take the lead. We also play defensively when needed to maintain the score. However, it is essential for us to be aggressive. Our pressing needs to be clear, and we need to press higher up the pitch. Over the past three weeks, despite our opponents taking the lead, we managed to come back as a team, and we did that very well. We are very happy about that. We regularly discuss how we need to play with the players. We need to do better. I have tried to implement a similar style of play at my previous clubs. We aim to play aggressively by pressing. If our pressing is not clear, the whole team plays passively, which is not what I want. I want everyone to be active in the game and to fight. I believe this is the best way for this team to play.”

The German coach noted that they have conceded faulty goals in their last two matches, concluding, “However, there will be no changes in defense. We conceded very simple goals in two consecutive weeks. They were goals from a long throw-in. Frankly, they were not positions we gave to the opponent. They were not situations where the opponent was inside. For me, what matters is the reaction the team shows. Players are not machines. Mistakes can happen; those are part of football. But as I said, the reaction of the team after conceding faulty goals is very important for me. Defense is not just done by four players. All 11 players need to contribute to the team both offensively and defensively.”