Marco Kurz stressed his Adelaide United players still have plenty of room for improvement ahead of their crucial Westfield FFA Cup Round of 32 match against Newcastle Jets.
A strong second-half performance from Adelaide secured a 4-0 pre-season friendly win over FFSA National Premier League outfit Adelaide Comets at Marden Sports Complex on Wednesday night.
New signing Johan Absalonsen opened the scoring during the first-half, before the floodgates opened after the break thanks to goals from Taylor Regan, Mark Ochieng and Lachlan Brook.
Reds Head Coach, Kurz, said his side encountered a few problems in the opening 15 minutes, but did improve as the match wore on.
“I think it’s not so simple,” Kurz said about his team’s start to the game.
“We changed the line-up to the last game in six positions.
“For example it was the first game for Johan (Absalonsen) and Vince (Lia) and we saw that we had problems to begin the match.
“But step-by-step in the match it was a little bit better and I think it’s normal in this situation in pre-season.
“We work hard in training but in the game I think we can do better.”
Kurz lauded the immediate impact of Danish winger Absalonsen following an impressive Reds debut.
The 31-year-old illustrated immense dynamism on the left flank and netted a goal and assisted Regan from a corner kick.
“I think it’s good for the player when he scored in the first game,” he said.
“For Johan it’s important when you’re a new player at a club to perform well.
“And we saw today that he can score and prepare goals, the second goal he kicked the corner.
“And I think it’s a good player for Adelaide.”
The German tactician insisted his side have a number of facets to build upon during training over the next week in preparation for the Newcastle clash.
“Every friendly match is a good preparation,” he explained.
“I think more friendly games will be better, but in the next week we have an FFA Cup match against an A-League team.
“I think they’re a very experienced team and we’ll try to win the game to get to the next stage.”
Kurz also highlighted the importance of seeing Reds fans attending games to help cheer the boys on.
“I think it’s very important that the fans came tonight (against Comets),” he said.
“They’re good for the team, but when we play against Newcastle there’ll be a lot more supporters.
“When there are more supporters then it’s better for the team.”
Adelaide United host Newcastle Jets in the Round of 32 of the 2017 Westfield FFA Cup on Wednesday, 9 August at Marden Sports Complex. Kick-off is at 7.00pm ACST.
