Head coach of "Noah": "The match against Sigma will be very important and difficult"

The head coach of the Armenian club "Noah", Sandro Perković, gave a press conference ahead of the third round match of the 2025/26 UEFA Conference League against the Czech club "Sigma Olomouc". The match will take place on November 6 at 21:45 Yerevan time at the Republican Stadium.

Sandro Perković’s press conference before "Noah" — "Sigma Olomouc"

— Several important players will miss the match due to injuries. How do you plan to replace them?

— At this stage of the season, in November, many clubs face squad problems related to injuries — this is part of football. Many of our strong players will not play tomorrow, but fortunately, we have a deep bench and many quality footballers. Also, this is a chance for those who previously played less.

— In your last league match you lost to Ararat-Armenia. How did the team prepare for this match after the defeat?

— We analyzed the match and worked on our mistakes. But everything is behind us, we must look forward. The match against Sigma is very important for us and will require a lot of effort. We will play against a very strong team, which competes in the Czech league with clubs like Slavia Prague, Sparta Prague and Viktoria Plzeň. We all know how strong these clubs are. Sigma won the Czech Cup and is playing very well this season. As far as I know, Sigma concedes on average about 0.5 goals per match — that is a very good indicator.

— Recently, Noah’s opponents often used five defenders, although this is not their base formation. Sigma usually plays with four defenders. Do you think they may also switch to a five-man defense?

— They usually play in a 4-2-3-1 system. I don’t think they will change the formation — in 90% of their matches they played exactly this way. But we are ready for any changes.

— Have you prepared any tactical surprises for the opponent?

— We want to be the team that dictates the play and plays our own football. We must create as many difficulties for the opponent as possible, and I believe full stands will help us.

— Which aspect of the game did you focus on the most while preparing?

— Mainly we focused on Sigma’s strong sides to neutralize them. We also studied their weaknesses to take advantage of them. In training we worked on all parts of the game — set pieces, defense, attack. I think we managed to do everything.

— Do you think Sigma is at the same level as your previous opponents — Rijeka and Universitatea Craiova?

— Yes, of course. All of them are strong teams. I would highlight that Sigma is more aggressive. I think tomorrow will be a difficult match.

— Are you starting to understand Armenian?

— Your language is beautiful, but very difficult. I decided to learn Armenian because I love Armenians, I love Armenia, I love my club. Out of respect for the Armenian people, I will learn your language. Unfortunately, I do not yet understand everything. I know 7-8 phrases and try to learn something new every day. Even now, while listening to the questions, I start to roughly understand what I am being asked. The language is difficult because it is not connected to Croatian, English or German, but I will learn it.

— Sigma concedes few goals, but also scores few. Can this play a role?

— Sigma has very good forwards who are strong in the air, fast wingers, as well as defenders with excellent passing ability who can play like number tens. It is a complete team. Yes, they do not score a lot, but in the matches I watched, they were simply unlucky — they create many chances. This is a very dangerous team that presses very well. We started the group stage well with 4 points, and tomorrow we must do everything for a good result at home.

— Noah’s results in the Armenian league are not very successful. Can this be a factor?

— No, I don’t think so. Of course, in the Premier League we are not in the position we would like to be, but many matches lie ahead, and I hope we will improve our situation by the end of the season. We approach every match with a task, regardless of our position in the table.

— Tomorrow’s match starts later than usual. Can this affect the team?

— No, we are professionals and we know how to prepare. We have a plan for how to spend the day before the match.

After two rounds, Noah has 4 points and is in 11th place in the overall Conference League standings. Sigma has 1 point and is in 28th place.