Following the match, head coach Goran Melher said: “We expected a somewhat more difficult game, especially because Northern Ireland performed better than England in the preliminary qualifiers. So, we can say that the result surprised us, but the players have worked perfectly since the start of the gathering. They were motivated from the very beginning. We dedicate this victory to our former kit manager, Nihad Kukan, who recently passed away, and every goal tonight is for him.”

Four-goal scorer Faruk Brkanić also commented on the match: “It was a good performance from us and one we prepared well for. We opened the qualifiers in the best possible way, with a convincing victory in front of our supporters. I had the honor of being the team’s top scorer tonight, but I’d put that aside. The most important things are the hard work and team spirit that have characterized us since the previous qualifiers, when unfortunately we didn’t manage to qualify for a major tournament. We’ve set ourselves a big goal, and that’s qualification for the World Cup. Now we have the match in Poland ahead of us, and we hope to return with a positive result.”