“It’s only the second time we’ve been at a European Championship,” says Sylvinho after a constructive night for Albania

Albania manager Sylvinho spoke to the media after following his team’s 2-1 defeat to Italy on match day two, held in a packed-out Dortmund Stadium. Sylvinho was disappointed his side couldn’t get a draw or win out of the game against reigning champions Italy: “I was disappointed for the result. I can’t hide my feelings.

“When you prepare a match and you’re up against a team like Italy who are such a good side. We worked for 10 days straight to try and win this match or at least get a draw.”

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However, Sylvinho was happy that his team could make their nation proud as the atmosphere inside of Dortmund Stadium reached new heights: “I need to thank all Albanians that were here, it was incredible.

We said two days ago that the entire stadium would be red, but outside, I saw so many proud Albanians to have a team here at the European Championship. They’re proud, and so too are we. It’s a shame we couldn’t equalise in the final minute, but these things happen.

Sylvinho also admitted that his players need more time in competitions like the EUROS: “I think we struggled in the first 25 minutes, it wasn’t easy. It’s only the second time we’ve been at a European Championship. We have some very good young players, but it’s not easy. And I said once that we need to play many competitions, a Euro and a World Cup, to get better.

Albania will now look ahead to Wednesday’s Group B meeting with Croatia in order to try and obtain their first victory at EURO24.

You can follow all the post-match reactions and ongoing action from the tournament here on FromTheSpot.

"It's only the second time we've been at a European Championship," says Sylvinho after a constructive night for Albania –