Krejci happy that Czech Republic did not give up despite playing down a man in England loss

[p]The Czechs [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/czech-republic-6LHwBDGU/england-j9N9ZNFA/?mid=AeCCmlWQ"]made an active start[/a], but [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/sulc-pavel/dYaeeH8k/"]Pavel Sulc[/a] failed to convert a one-on-one chance. Then, in the 25th minute, he upset the home fans for a second time when he was sent off for a hard challenge. "It was extremely demanding, but I am proud of how we battled until the end. It certainly was not easy. [b]Even though we played 70 minutes with ten men and under immense pressure, we tried to maintain our identity[/b]," [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/krejci-ladislav/nZ8SVvvE/"]Krejci[/a] said in a post-match television interview with CT sport.[/p][p]"[b]I am glad that we did not lose our courage and that even while short-handed, we were able to create chances in our own style[/b]. There are no greater challenges than matches against teams like these, and it is up to us to keep going," the Czech captain added.[/p][image alt="Momentum" id="e1fc42e9-2b07-499a-82f1-4090274d0134" credit-line="Flashscore" hidden-attrs="credit" guid="8ae13226-4c00-49c3-8de7-b1982ce08cb1" original-width="2160" original-height="2700" /][p]Santi Denia's side now have the chance to test themselves against Europe's best teams in Group A of the Nations League. "[b]It is every player's dream to reach the highest level, both individually and as a team. Not everyone has the chance to play against opponents like these every week. We have that opportunity in six Nations League matches, which is an invaluable education. I am glad that we can compare ourselves with and learn from the very best[/b]," Krejci explained.[/p][p]The Wolves defender also added: "[b]When Euro qualifying arrives, and we will want to make it to the tournament, we simply have to measure ourselves against teams like these[/b]. [b]I believe we will carry the habits from these matches into the qualifiers and then be able to outplay our opponents[/b]."[/p][embed guid="ddb9df38-0210-493c-b539-c20e31d6109a" url="https://x.com/Flashscorecom/status/2105034563571331297?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]He himself faced the extremely difficult task of keeping Bayern Munich striker [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/kane-harry/v5HSlEAa/"]Harry Kane[/a] quiet. "[b]When it comes to preparing for this type of player, I think that not only I but the other lads watch football very often, so before the match it was just about fine-tuning the details. We focused more on how they play for the national team than on their individual performances at club level. We had their game perfectly mapped out,[/b]" said the former Sparta Praha player.[/p][p]Finally, the Czech captain made sure to praise the home supporters, thanking them for their backing: "[b]The atmosphere was simply fantastic. We felt tremendous support from the stands, and thanks to that we left absolutely everything on the pitch[/b]. [b]We are very grateful to the fans for that. I am glad that we all see it the same way, and I hope we will continue in that spirit.[/b]"[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/czech-republic-6LHwBDGU/england-j9N9ZNFA/?mid=AeCCmlWQ"][b]View the match stats on Flashscore[/b][/a][/p]