It will be interesting
Thursday, December 5, 2019
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Shakhtar defender Sergii Kryvtsov answered the reporters' questions on the eve of the match vs Olimpik
- How’s the preparation for the match with Olimpik going? Has anything changed after losing points in Mariupol?
- Nothing has changed, although, indeed, it wasn’t a very confident performance of ours as we lost two points. But now, all our thoughts are about Olimpik, who have had a great winning streak that was interrupted in the last round. We are psyching ourselves up for a great match. I think it will be interesting.
- Do you follow Olimpik’s performance, what could you highlight?
- They changed the coach, the opponents started demonstrating more combinational football, trying to make transitions from defence to attack through ball control. It seems to me that Olimpik are currently in the top form. The team did not park the bus vs Dynamo, so I think they will play openly against us as well.
- Did the weather make adjustments to your preparation?
- No, everything's the same. We’ve got heated pitches, good conditions. We are used to the weather getting colder by the end of the first stage.
- The busy season takes a lot of energy, with three more games still ahead. Are they all important?
- We are facing a series of games against some strong opponents, plus between the league meetings, we’ll have the most important match vs Atalanta in the Champions League. This is a decider in terms of advancing from the group. Therefore, we must summon up all strength and secure a good ending.
- Some first-team regulars didn’t take part in the match against Mariupol. Did the respite help?
- We carried out rotation - this is the decision of the coaching staff. Plus, two players missed this meeting due to suspension. Thus, we got more time for recovery, which should positively influence our fitness.
- Considering the upcoming Champions League match, do you want to solve everything with Olimpik in the first half and save energy? And is it possible to simulate something for Friday’s game against Atalanta?
- No, we don’t think about that. We have the match against Olimpik shortly, so we'll talk about the Champions League later. I can’t call it a rehearsal either, because the teams have completely different tactical patterns. It won’t be possible to play against Olimpik like against Atalanta.
- Nothing has changed, although, indeed, it wasn’t a very confident performance of ours as we lost two points. But now, all our thoughts are about Olimpik, who have had a great winning streak that was interrupted in the last round. We are psyching ourselves up for a great match. I think it will be interesting.
- Do you follow Olimpik’s performance, what could you highlight?
- They changed the coach, the opponents started demonstrating more combinational football, trying to make transitions from defence to attack through ball control. It seems to me that Olimpik are currently in the top form. The team did not park the bus vs Dynamo, so I think they will play openly against us as well.
- Did the weather make adjustments to your preparation?
- No, everything's the same. We’ve got heated pitches, good conditions. We are used to the weather getting colder by the end of the first stage.
- The busy season takes a lot of energy, with three more games still ahead. Are they all important?
- We are facing a series of games against some strong opponents, plus between the league meetings, we’ll have the most important match vs Atalanta in the Champions League. This is a decider in terms of advancing from the group. Therefore, we must summon up all strength and secure a good ending.
- Some first-team regulars didn’t take part in the match against Mariupol. Did the respite help?
- We carried out rotation - this is the decision of the coaching staff. Plus, two players missed this meeting due to suspension. Thus, we got more time for recovery, which should positively influence our fitness.
- Considering the upcoming Champions League match, do you want to solve everything with Olimpik in the first half and save energy? And is it possible to simulate something for Friday’s game against Atalanta?
- No, we don’t think about that. We have the match against Olimpik shortly, so we'll talk about the Champions League later. I can’t call it a rehearsal either, because the teams have completely different tactical patterns. It won’t be possible to play against Olimpik like against Atalanta.