We’ll manage to achieve our goals
Saturday, July 13, 2019
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Shakhtar manager Luis Castro speaks about training camps, tactic, readiness for the season, and fans
- Mr Castro, what do you make of the team training in Germany and Austria?
- There are always certain goals for the pre-season camps. We’ve done a lot, but some aims still need to be achieved. There’s a fortnight remaining until the first competitive game. Of course, it’s very important to pass to the players our ideas of transitions from defence to attack and vice versa. The team gradually absorb the information. We try to pass all our knowledge, but there are always difficulties in grasping certain things. That's quite normal. There are days when we feel much more confident because we feel that we succeed at doing the job, the guys understand everything. I know that the coach who has been here for a few years, practised some slightly different football. That was one cycle of work, now we’ve got a completely different one. Of course, certain inconsistency is present. Probably, not everyone sees that, but we, being the people who have been involved in football and held training camps from year to year for quite a long while, feel that they have some discomfort associated with accepting new ideas. Nevertheless, the guys prove themselves in a fantastic way: they are attentive, really focussed on work, which allows us to develop the team every day. And we’ll manage to achieve our goals. I’ve got very positive impressions of the things the players showed us.
- Many people paid attention to the training process: it involves little running work, with no gym and fitness training, with the main focus on ballwork and intensity. Is that your method?
- Yes. That’s a specific methodology I’ve been applying for ages. I studied and used all that over many years. Tactical periodization, if I’m not mistaken, was practised by many coaches back in the eighties. We pay maximum attention to the things most needed in the match. With this approach, you practise football itself, preparing directly for the game. We train to perform better. Therefore, the main goal is tactical work. Plus psychology, technique, and physical exercise, with all that being integrated. We feel that the players are comfortable, we see that they feel really good physically, with no issues occurring in training. I’m sure this approach will help us achieve our goals for the season.
- For years, Shakhtar played using the 4-2-3-1 formation, while you get them used to the 4-1-4-1 one. Please tell us about its advantage. Do the team manage to adapt to it?
- At the training camp, we practised the 4-3-3 formation. If you want, you can also call it 4-1-4-1. But from this point on, we’ll begin using another formation as well, with different dynamics. I knew that the guys would find it a little difficult - this is a kind of challenge, something new. I understood that this might cause a certain discomfort. The footballers got used to the 4-2-3-1, and now we are starting practising another formation. Perhaps, in some matches, you will see the one that we practised at the training camp, plus a new one. I think that the tactical pattern is not always the main thing, and I don’t like discussing it a lot. The most important thing is the performance dynamics. When talking about 4-1-4-1 as if four were sitting deep, with one in front of them, then another four plus one. But this never happens in football. Here, the main thing is the dynamics. We just start the match with this tactical pattern, and then everyone joins in both attacking and defending. Any formation has both advantages and disadvantages. Either you use the opponents’ weakness or they take advantage of yours. Coaches are interested in balance - the guys must feel confident offensively and comfortable defensively. This balance allows the attacking players to charge forward and not worry about losing the ball unexpectedly. That’s exactly what we are expecting from our tactical model. We want to increase the number of attacking, without losing the defensive balance. We pursue this goal both in the formation we practised at the training camps and in the one that we will work on further.
- Please name the match you liked best in terms of play organization.
- Everyone had a different context. We shouldn’t assess it so early. After any match, the sensations may differ, it’s important to take the opponents into account. Often, we may sum it up not quite correctly, so it’s always better to review the game once or twice in order to draw certain conclusions. Perhaps, the encounter with Copenhagen was generally the best one. I also liked some moments in the meeting vs Ludogorets. However, we are not going to rejoice at what we’ve done these days. There is a long way ahead and a good chance of making progress. I’m sure we’ll do it.
- Over 30 footballers took part in the training camp. Have you already decided on Shakhtar’s squad for early season?
- Yes, we have. The purpose of training camps is for the coaches to get to know the players better, and for the latter to understand us better. Each time, we’ve got an increasingly better idea of the team players’ ability. In the future, will have to make decisions. And at the same time, football is a fairly dynamic process, with different, completely unexpected things happening sometimes. Given this, I don’t think that now it’s worth thinking about the player list. No, let's just work daily. If you ask me about my preferred squad today, I’ve got an answer. But the point is that after 15 days it may be completely different. It’s better to follow the market dynamics. I understand that the management and the president of Shakhtar want the best players to be present in the team, so I’m absolutely calm. I know that every decision taken at the club is only for the better. The best thing for us is claiming victories and winning titles. We will be ready for the new season in the best way possible.
- What number of players do you plan to retain?
- I like it when we’ve got four goalkeepers and some 23 to 24 outfield players. That’s the best option for working. That is, we’ll always have 27 or 28 football players. They must meet the required criteria to be in the team.
- What do you expect from the Super Cup game, which will open the season?
- We consider every encounter with a desire to win it. So it was and always will be until my retirement. Our goal is to win.
- Do you know about an uncompromising nature of the rivalry vs Dynamo, about its importance for the fans?
- Of course, I do. I witnessed such games as Porto vs Benfica in the Cup semi-final and the Portuguese league. Shakhtar and Dynamo have the same kind of derby. I know what those clashes mean for the fans and for us. We need to be up to the mark to claim the result. Emotionally, those games are different, but it doesn’t mean at all that the rest of the games are not so important. The Super Cup is a kind of final, in which the title is played immediately. Everyone who works in football understands what a derby or Clasico mean to any club.
- What’s your impression of the level of the Ukrainian Premier League? What features could you highlight?
- I see the similarity with what happens in other leagues in Europe. There are clubs that constantly top the table, and the others who find it more difficult. The same thing happens in Spain, Italy, and Portugal. And it always will be like that. Perhaps, sometimes this, to a certain extent, deprives the teams who cannot reach the top of the competition. The championship is not so demanding - not seven or eight teams are competing for the top spot, and then this can affect their performance in the Champions League or Europa League. The problem exists both in Ukraine and in other countries - that’s the reality. We’ve just had a season in which four clubs represented England in two European competitions, and all of them are top-level because the competitive ability of their league is very high ... We will try to do everything possible, and the league will develop as quickly as possible. Coaches will work for their teams to progress. It’s important to set ourselves those goals for the league to progress. Taking advantage of this opportunity, I wish everyone success and hope that the tournament will be very interesting. I want the sporting truth to be always present and I want us to respect each other.
- On August 3, Shakhtar will have their first home match of the season against Karpaty. Will this moment be special for you?
- Of course yes. Shakhtar is the club with a beautiful history and a large number of trophies. To represent it is a great honour. The first game at home will certainly be memorable. We will be with our fans, with those who like our team. However, I also remember those who would like to be with us on that day, but, unfortunately, they can’t do so. In daily work and during matches, we don’t forget what kind of responsibility we bear. We should bring joy to many people who are not with us now, but who would like to be with us. We will try to give it to them.
- Fans are looking forward to seeing you at the stadium. Would you like to address them? Maybe, you can already say a few words in Russian?
- I know very little yet: “davai-davai”, “spasibo” and various more specific phrases for training. I believe that conscience must always be clear. Our bodies often get very tired from work, literally being like a squeezed lemon. But I want to tell the fans that I will give my maximum and share my professional knowledge. I’ve always done so and will never change. My conscience will be clear. You can be absolutely sure: I will give my all to my job every day. Just like my players who you know. Those guys are working hard, they are ambitious. They are a family, around which there is a good structure that enables them to think about football only. I want to tell the fans that we will try to deliver a great campaign this season. We want to bring you joy every day with the things we do. We have a great desire to be as successful a club as Shakhtar has been for several years now. Shakhtar are the champions!
- There are always certain goals for the pre-season camps. We’ve done a lot, but some aims still need to be achieved. There’s a fortnight remaining until the first competitive game. Of course, it’s very important to pass to the players our ideas of transitions from defence to attack and vice versa. The team gradually absorb the information. We try to pass all our knowledge, but there are always difficulties in grasping certain things. That's quite normal. There are days when we feel much more confident because we feel that we succeed at doing the job, the guys understand everything. I know that the coach who has been here for a few years, practised some slightly different football. That was one cycle of work, now we’ve got a completely different one. Of course, certain inconsistency is present. Probably, not everyone sees that, but we, being the people who have been involved in football and held training camps from year to year for quite a long while, feel that they have some discomfort associated with accepting new ideas. Nevertheless, the guys prove themselves in a fantastic way: they are attentive, really focussed on work, which allows us to develop the team every day. And we’ll manage to achieve our goals. I’ve got very positive impressions of the things the players showed us.
- Many people paid attention to the training process: it involves little running work, with no gym and fitness training, with the main focus on ballwork and intensity. Is that your method?
- Yes. That’s a specific methodology I’ve been applying for ages. I studied and used all that over many years. Tactical periodization, if I’m not mistaken, was practised by many coaches back in the eighties. We pay maximum attention to the things most needed in the match. With this approach, you practise football itself, preparing directly for the game. We train to perform better. Therefore, the main goal is tactical work. Plus psychology, technique, and physical exercise, with all that being integrated. We feel that the players are comfortable, we see that they feel really good physically, with no issues occurring in training. I’m sure this approach will help us achieve our goals for the season.
- For years, Shakhtar played using the 4-2-3-1 formation, while you get them used to the 4-1-4-1 one. Please tell us about its advantage. Do the team manage to adapt to it?
- At the training camp, we practised the 4-3-3 formation. If you want, you can also call it 4-1-4-1. But from this point on, we’ll begin using another formation as well, with different dynamics. I knew that the guys would find it a little difficult - this is a kind of challenge, something new. I understood that this might cause a certain discomfort. The footballers got used to the 4-2-3-1, and now we are starting practising another formation. Perhaps, in some matches, you will see the one that we practised at the training camp, plus a new one. I think that the tactical pattern is not always the main thing, and I don’t like discussing it a lot. The most important thing is the performance dynamics. When talking about 4-1-4-1 as if four were sitting deep, with one in front of them, then another four plus one. But this never happens in football. Here, the main thing is the dynamics. We just start the match with this tactical pattern, and then everyone joins in both attacking and defending. Any formation has both advantages and disadvantages. Either you use the opponents’ weakness or they take advantage of yours. Coaches are interested in balance - the guys must feel confident offensively and comfortable defensively. This balance allows the attacking players to charge forward and not worry about losing the ball unexpectedly. That’s exactly what we are expecting from our tactical model. We want to increase the number of attacking, without losing the defensive balance. We pursue this goal both in the formation we practised at the training camps and in the one that we will work on further.
- Please name the match you liked best in terms of play organization.
- Everyone had a different context. We shouldn’t assess it so early. After any match, the sensations may differ, it’s important to take the opponents into account. Often, we may sum it up not quite correctly, so it’s always better to review the game once or twice in order to draw certain conclusions. Perhaps, the encounter with Copenhagen was generally the best one. I also liked some moments in the meeting vs Ludogorets. However, we are not going to rejoice at what we’ve done these days. There is a long way ahead and a good chance of making progress. I’m sure we’ll do it.
- Over 30 footballers took part in the training camp. Have you already decided on Shakhtar’s squad for early season?
- Yes, we have. The purpose of training camps is for the coaches to get to know the players better, and for the latter to understand us better. Each time, we’ve got an increasingly better idea of the team players’ ability. In the future, will have to make decisions. And at the same time, football is a fairly dynamic process, with different, completely unexpected things happening sometimes. Given this, I don’t think that now it’s worth thinking about the player list. No, let's just work daily. If you ask me about my preferred squad today, I’ve got an answer. But the point is that after 15 days it may be completely different. It’s better to follow the market dynamics. I understand that the management and the president of Shakhtar want the best players to be present in the team, so I’m absolutely calm. I know that every decision taken at the club is only for the better. The best thing for us is claiming victories and winning titles. We will be ready for the new season in the best way possible.
- What number of players do you plan to retain?
- I like it when we’ve got four goalkeepers and some 23 to 24 outfield players. That’s the best option for working. That is, we’ll always have 27 or 28 football players. They must meet the required criteria to be in the team.
- What do you expect from the Super Cup game, which will open the season?
- We consider every encounter with a desire to win it. So it was and always will be until my retirement. Our goal is to win.
- Do you know about an uncompromising nature of the rivalry vs Dynamo, about its importance for the fans?
- Of course, I do. I witnessed such games as Porto vs Benfica in the Cup semi-final and the Portuguese league. Shakhtar and Dynamo have the same kind of derby. I know what those clashes mean for the fans and for us. We need to be up to the mark to claim the result. Emotionally, those games are different, but it doesn’t mean at all that the rest of the games are not so important. The Super Cup is a kind of final, in which the title is played immediately. Everyone who works in football understands what a derby or Clasico mean to any club.
- What’s your impression of the level of the Ukrainian Premier League? What features could you highlight?
- I see the similarity with what happens in other leagues in Europe. There are clubs that constantly top the table, and the others who find it more difficult. The same thing happens in Spain, Italy, and Portugal. And it always will be like that. Perhaps, sometimes this, to a certain extent, deprives the teams who cannot reach the top of the competition. The championship is not so demanding - not seven or eight teams are competing for the top spot, and then this can affect their performance in the Champions League or Europa League. The problem exists both in Ukraine and in other countries - that’s the reality. We’ve just had a season in which four clubs represented England in two European competitions, and all of them are top-level because the competitive ability of their league is very high ... We will try to do everything possible, and the league will develop as quickly as possible. Coaches will work for their teams to progress. It’s important to set ourselves those goals for the league to progress. Taking advantage of this opportunity, I wish everyone success and hope that the tournament will be very interesting. I want the sporting truth to be always present and I want us to respect each other.
- On August 3, Shakhtar will have their first home match of the season against Karpaty. Will this moment be special for you?
- Of course yes. Shakhtar is the club with a beautiful history and a large number of trophies. To represent it is a great honour. The first game at home will certainly be memorable. We will be with our fans, with those who like our team. However, I also remember those who would like to be with us on that day, but, unfortunately, they can’t do so. In daily work and during matches, we don’t forget what kind of responsibility we bear. We should bring joy to many people who are not with us now, but who would like to be with us. We will try to give it to them.
- Fans are looking forward to seeing you at the stadium. Would you like to address them? Maybe, you can already say a few words in Russian?
- I know very little yet: “davai-davai”, “spasibo” and various more specific phrases for training. I believe that conscience must always be clear. Our bodies often get very tired from work, literally being like a squeezed lemon. But I want to tell the fans that I will give my maximum and share my professional knowledge. I’ve always done so and will never change. My conscience will be clear. You can be absolutely sure: I will give my all to my job every day. Just like my players who you know. Those guys are working hard, they are ambitious. They are a family, around which there is a good structure that enables them to think about football only. I want to tell the fans that we will try to deliver a great campaign this season. We want to bring you joy every day with the things we do. We have a great desire to be as successful a club as Shakhtar has been for several years now. Shakhtar are the champions!
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