Tskhadadze Looks for Further Improvement against Ukraine and Poland
Following Georgia’s respectable 2-0 defeat to world champions Germany at the end of March, the first competitive match of Kakha Tskhadadze’s reign as head coach, there were whispers of encouragement and a sense that the country may be able to halt its alarming slide into international backwater status.
Tskhadadze, who is now exclusively the national head coach after a brief period of combining this with the Inter Baku job, now faces a double header of difficult matches, a friendly against Ukraine in Linz, Austria on June 9 followed by a Euro 2016 qualifier against Poland in Warsaw on June 13.
Nevertheless, the matches offer an opportunity to build upon the positivity generated by a perfectly acceptable performance in the defeat to the Germans.
Tskhadadze welcomes back Spartak Moscow playmaker Jano Ananidze to his 23-man squad which also includes some surprising old names.
Midfielder Gogita Gogua, notorious for questionable behaviour and attitude to a point that he was banished from the national setup under Temur Ketsbaia, returns to the national squad looking to win his first cap for over four years.
Perhaps a factor in Gogua’s selection, his last appearance for Georgia came in the historic 1-0 victory over Croatia in March 2011.
Another player returning to the squad is right-back Lasha Salukvadze who played under Tskhadadze at Inter Baku. He too is seeking a first competitive international appearance since 2011.
Georgia’s first-choice goalkeeper Giorgi Loria joins up with the squad following an impressive first season in Greece for OFI Crete. His displays for the island club drew the attention of several European sides but the Georgian stopper opted to stay in Greece with champions Olympiacos where he has signed a two-year deal.
Unfortunately, Tskhadadze may have to do without the services of captain Jaba Kankava, who competed for Dnipro in the recent Europa League final defeat to Sevilla, for the match with Ukraine although he could return to face the Poles if suitably fit.
The form of at least two others in the Georgian squad add to further cause for optimism. On the last weekend of the Italian season, Empoli’s Levan Mchedlidze scored twice against Inter Milan in the San Siro and will surely retain his place as Georgia’s lone striker.
Competition is mounting though as Mate Vatsadze enjoying an impressive goal-scoring season for Danish side Aarhus.
Elsewhere, Vitesse Arnhem midfielder Valeri Qazaishvili has been in sparkling form which helped the Dutch side to a place in next season’s Europa League via the play-offs.
Peculiarly, Qazaishvili (known as Vako) has featured in only one of Georgia’s six qualifiers so far – the 1-0 defeat to Scotland in Glasgow in October last year.
The 22-year old is due more international recognition than he has been given so far, and possesses all of the qualities (skill, shooting, passing, stamina) to succeed as a box-to-box midfield player, as he has been demonstrating consistently for over a year with Vitesse.
Analysis of Georgia Today’s Alastair Watt:
“While Georgia may be out of the running for a place in Euro 2016, there is plenty at stake for the national team and their new head coach. The likes of Loria, Kankava, Kashia and Qazaishvili have enjoyed excellent seasons in strong leagues and/or top-level European competition so there is some encouragement for Georgian individuals. What Tskhadadze must do now is build a team around these dependable members of his squad.
“Finding a goal-scorer has been a seemingly endless assignment for Georgia’s head coaches since Shota Arveladze retired in the late 2000s, and Tskhadadze’s options in the striking department remain lean. Mchedlidze is currently the front runner with four Serie A goals to his name this year, but he hasn’t managed a competitive goal for Georgia since scoring against Scotland in 2007.
“In Ananidze, Chanturia, Kenia and Okriashvili, Georgia are blessed with an assortment of talented dribblers and/or playmakers but against superior opposition they can scarcely afford more than two of them in the lineup. Ananidze and Okriashvili have the lead in terms of caps, but Kenia shone in Tskhadadze’s first two matches with Malta and Germany. Chanturia remains an enigma with undoubted ability but a reluctance to pass that renders him difficult to insert into a functioning team unit.
“Tskhadadze’s aim may not be qualification any more, but rather to have a say in who does qualify and an unlikely point or three in Warsaw would elicit a combination of appreciation and concern from Georgia’s other two most plausible victims – Scotland and Ireland.”
Alastair Watt