I. Kovalevich: the winner of the "Naftan" - "Gent" match will be determined in Belgium

July 16, Vitebsk / Sergey Kochetov - BELTA /. The winner of the confrontation between Novopolotsk's Naftan and Belgium's Gent will be known in Belgium. This opinion was expressed at the post-match press conference by the head coach of the Novopolotsk club Igor Kovalevich, BELTA correspondent reports. "I am pleased with how the players were настроились for the match and how they played the game in general," noted the coach of the Novopolotsk team. In his opinion, the fact that it was the first official match in the international arena left a certain imprint on the game of the Novopolotsk team. The coaching plan for the game worked 90%, but Naftan failed to keep their goal intact. "It's a shame to concede a goal in the 89th minute," Igor Kovalevich stated with regret. Nevertheless, the Belgian team met the expectations of Naftan's coaching staff, and the fate of a ticket to the next round of the Europa League will be decided in Belgium. The head coach of Belgium's Gent was not satisfied with the result, but the goal scored in the final minutes gives Gent an advantage in the return game. "This was our first official match of the new season, perhaps that's why our players did not perform very well on the field," believes the coach of the Belgians. At the same time, in the second half, Michel Preud'homme's charges managed to play a little better. The Belgian team did not expect to concede two goals on the opponent's field, however, the coach of the Belgians noted the beautiful strike by Alexander Degtyarev. The return match in Belgium will take place on July 23. -0-