Ozhan Pulat: “We should be in pursuit of solutions, not excuses.”

Hatayspor’s Head Coach Özhan Pulat, after the 3-0 defeat against Samsunspor, stated that they had no injured players or new transfers, saying, “We should be in pursuit of solutions, not excuses.”

In the 4th week of the Trendyol Super League, Hatayspor lost 3-0 to Samsunspor, whom they hosted in Mersin. In the press conference held after the match, Pulat evaluated the game, saying that as a team, they should feel ashamed for not having the spirit of the fans who traveled by bus for 4 hours to Mersin, watched the match for 2 hours, and would return after another 4-hour journey. He expressed that they needed to want to win the match as much as the fans did, stating, “Today, we bowed our heads along with our fans and management. Yes, two key players from our starting lineup were absent. Yes, our transfers were not present today, but we should be in pursuit of solutions, not excuses. Today we will feel shame, but tomorrow is a new day. We will gather our old energy again, and with our new transfers and the return of our injured and suspended players, we will put the right things we did in those 3 weeks on the field more strongly. But today everyone needs to reflect on themselves; in the player group and the coaching staff. Because the fans are doing their best, and our management is doing everything they can. We must not disappoint these people at this point. We all fight fiercely. If we lose 3-0, we can say we fought. We lost to Galatasaray; we fought. The entire Turkish football community appreciated us. We fought against Kasımpaşa; we received praise for our game. We faced many external factors in Antalya. Again we fought and earned respect,” he said.

“Today, those who did not do their job well were us”

Congratulating Samsunspor, Pulat said, “They won the match by staying true to tactical discipline and wanting it more than the home team. I also congratulate the referee team. They did their job well. Today, those who did not do their job well were us. But we will learn a lesson from this. Today, just like the fans who spent 10 hours on the road coming for 4 hours and returning for another 4 hours, we will restore the Hatayspor spirit in these 15 days. We will look to the future with hope from the last four weeks and the first three weeks and redeem ourselves. No one should doubt this.”

“Both our transfers are coming, and our two injured and suspended players are returning”

In response to a journalist’s question, “How will you evaluate the break?” Pulat said, “You are actually one of those who know us best. You closely follow our training and matches. Hatayspor had tactical discipline and a geometry in both offense and defense for 3 weeks. However, our shortcomings today and our motivation in the game were actually indicative of this score. Our transfers are coming; two players were completed today, one is here. Our two injured and suspended players are returning. Meanwhile, we hope to close this gap by adding one or two players to our team with both a preparation match and double training.”