More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
Ebbsfleet boss Dennis Kutrieb has told his squad that they need to find ways to win games that they dominate.
The Fleet are due back in action on Saturday at home to Havant behind closed doors in National League South after a Covid-19 outbreak in their squad forced them to self-isolate for two weeks.
They’ll be looking for their first goal on home turf since October, after failing to find the net against Maidstone and Tonbridge last month.
Kutrieb missed the Tonbridge game but he felt the frustration while watching at home.
“We tried to score and had lots of possession, we played a nice game but nice is not the question,” said Kutrieb. “The question is winning games and it’s not enough to do that.
“We have to learn and get things out of games. We need to have a good process in the future where we have possession and create situations in the opposition box – not big chances – (and win), that’s one of the tasks in football. We have to put the ball in the back of the net.
“The boys were very disappointed after the Tonbridge game. We looked at the stats, we had 75 per cent possession, 10-2 shots and 9-1 corners in our favour so they are good stats. But it doesn’t matter when you lose the game.
“We were very frustrated after the game and then the next day we had to go into quarantine. That’s hard to take and they’ve had to wait three weeks to put it right. Hopefully they can show that there’s more in the team and they’re able to win games.
“I was in isolation and watched it on the stream. It was really hard - it’s not my job to sit and watch on the TV. It was a new experience for me and not one that I want to do again.
“I was gutted as I knew we prepared well and we played a good game, but maybe we were not determined enough to score a goal.”
That game against Tonbridge is particularly hard to get over without a game since then to distract Fleet minds.
Kutrieb knows that they had enough openings in the final third to have picked up a positive result.
“I’d say we created enough chances against Tonbridge,” he added. “Lee Martin had three, Rakish Bingham, Bobby Joe-Taylor, Alex Eirich had one when he came on and perhaps we could have had a penalty in the 93rd minute.
“We created enough to win the game but we didn’t test their keeper enough. At Eastbourne we hit the target and their keeper had a fine game, which is fine with me. But against Tonbridge, we didn’t do that.
“We have a really high rate for running and every player on the pitch is working hard, they are running their socks off, but the most important thing is getting points. When teams beat us 1-0 then they deserve to, and it doesn’t matter if we have 10 shots on goal or not.
“We have to get better at things, that’s what we want and we have told the boys.”
With time to reflect on his first two months of competitive football in England, Kutrieb felt Ebbsfleet should have picked up more points.
“I’d say it’s been okay,” he replied, when asked how he’d assess Fleet’s season so far. “It’s not more than okay.
“We should have a few more points, at least four more points. If we’d got that then I’d be happier, especially the game against Tonbridge. The three points hurt a lot for the league table but not for the long term or the progress that we’re making.
“The most important thing is winning games and getting points. We can’t say that we were the better side and not have the points.
“I’ve told the boys that it’s okay if you can’t win every game but now the next point is that we win the games when we are able to, and when we’re the better side. When the opposition is better than us, that’s fine.
“But when we are the better side, have more possession and chances, then we need to adapt and learn how to win. We have to be more clinical and take our chances, and not concede easy goals.
“Against Eastbourne they had two shots, one on target and one wide, and we conceded a goal. Against Tonbridge, it was the same, one shot on target and they scored. We have to be better defensively and more determined to avoid that.”
One bright note has been the first action in a Fleet shirt for forward Alex Eirich, who joined in the summer from Kutrieb’s former club, TB Berlin.
A cruciate ligament injury at the start of last season sidelined him for most of the campaign and he then picked up a hamstring problem after moving to Stonebridge Road.
“It’s been very frustrating for him,” said Kutrieb, who knows Eirich will need time to get his match sharpness. “I was happy that he got his first minutes for the club. He is keen to be here and work very hard.
“He was injured for 10 months and he came back just as we went into lockdown in Germany. He’s had to be humble and wait but now it’s looking good for him.
“I don’t think he is where he was before he got injured (in terms of match fitness) but he could help us, especially in January, with the amount of games we’ve got to play.”
