We train via videoconferencing
Friday, May 1, 2020
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Shakhtar defender David Khocholava answered fans’ questions on Instagram Live
- David, today is the 51st day of quarantine in Ukraine. What have you been doing at home?
- The coaches try to send us some updated exercises, we train together via videoconferencing. I spend more time with my family, I cook more often, I read books and watch movies. I’m learning to play the piano a bit. My girlfriend plays well, she teaches me some of it. I haven’t made any progress yet, but I hope to do it better soon.
- How do you train via videoconferencing?
- The coach goes online and sends us a link. There are many windows in the application. We are better adapted now, while at the very beginning of quarantine, when we didn’t have time to buy some football equipment, we used toilet paper rolls or five-litre PET bottles instead of cones. It was a bit hard intially, but everyone got used to it, we bought exercise bikes and treadmills.
- What’s the coronavirus situation in Georgia?
- Quarantine measures are much tougher there. To differ from Ukraine where you can wear a mask outdoors, for about a week you couldn’t even get around by car in Georgia. People wear not only masks, but also a kind of plastic screens to protect their eyes and noses. And, as far as I know, they still have a curfew from 21:00 till 6:00 to limit travelling as much as possible.
- Are there any predictions regarding the end of quarantine in Ukraine and what will happen to football?
- I think they will ease quarantine measures in about 10 days, and on May 12, people will start working so that the economy does not suffer that much. All businesses suffer massive losses. We will probably have to wear masks for quite a long time, maybe for a year. It seems to me that if the Championship, the Champions League and the Europa League resume, during the rest of the season we will definitely play behind closed doors.
- What’s the most unusual present you received from the fans?
- A tablespoon with my name on it after the match.
- What one rule in football would you change?
- Hard question. Probably I wouldn’t change anything. Maybe I would just remove the VAR. Over time, everything has improved in football, and now, I think, its rules are just perfect.
- Who’s the fastest one at Shakhtar?
- Without the ball, Dodo’s the one. He’s really fast. I remember that we had trials at the base, a 30-metre race. Everybody covered the distance with 3.8 to 3.9 seconds, while Dodo just dashed and finished it in 3.58 seconds! It seemed to me that this is faster than a world record. But besides him, there is another person who runs with the ball much faster than without it - that’s Taison. It’s just impossible to catch up with him if he runs with the ball.
- What do you hear most often from Pyatov during the match?
- He prompts all the time: left, right, forward, backward, behind the back. It feels like he has been sitting on my shoulder throughout the game! It helps the defenders, we need those prompts.
- What was your reaction when Shakhtar offered you to sign a deal?
- I have long known that Shakhtar were following me and wanted to sign a contract. I played in Odesa then, so they attended those games and watched me. So that wasn’t new to me, I got used to it. Of course, I was glad, but didn’t experience any shock because I was also getting ready for that.
- Do you feel like a foreigner at Shakhtar?
- Nope. Many people at the club say that I’m no foreigner at all. But sometimes it’s beneficial to take advantage of that. Suppose, after a vacation, the foreigners arrive a day later. While I always need to get back on the same date with the Ukrainians. I call the doctor and say: I'm a foreign player, give me one more day! But they never do.
- What would you choose: to win the World Cup with the national team of Georgia or the Champions League with Shakhtar?
- I think that Georgia are less likely to win the World Cup than Shakhtar are to win the Champions League title. So, if I need to choose between those, let it be the first option. Because Shakhtar have every chance of winning in the Champions League.
- What’s your most cherished dream as a player of Georgia?
- From short-term objectives - to reach the European Championship. Georgia have never made it to any big tournaments, but now we have a very good chance. Meanwhile, we need to win two games, though I don’t know when they will be held.
- They say that Georgians have fast and ‘technical’ legs due to national dances. Is it true?
- I now understand why my legs aren’t fast at all - I didn’t dance. As a child, I attended karate classes for a year and a half. After that, I still stretch well, because they pulled the muscles using force, so later I experienced no muscle problems at all.
- Khachapuri or khinkali?
- I haven’t eaten that for so long! I would pick khachapuri now. I can eat khinkali just once in every six months, only on my vacation when I fly back to Tbilisi. I can’t try it in Ukraine, because the quality is absolutely different.
- What are your favourite spots in Tbilisi?
- The Turtle Lake. It’s near my house, in the morning you can walk, run. Also, there’s a good café called Stamba where many of my relatives and friends gather together. And the third favourite spot, of course, is my home.
- Would you advise some locations in Georgia: what places should people visit?
- In the summer it’s great to walk around in Batumi: a very good sea, the city, a lot of people, restaurants. Tbilisi is pleased to welcome guests all year round. I can tell you one secret: when you fly to Georgia for the first time, they give you a bottle of wine right at the customs.
- What TV series did you watch during quarantine? Could you recommend the best one.
- I’ve watched absolutely everything! From the latest on Netflix, the good one is Ozark. From classic ones, I would suggest Game of Thrones. Plus Homeland and Vikings. I think that’ll be enough for two or three weeks.
- What coach would you like to work with in the future?
- Probably with Klopp. I like the way he sets up the team and their morale.
- What are the top 5 central defenders in the history of football?
- Maldini, Nesta, Ramos, Chivadze, and Cannavaro.
- Who’s the best Georgian player at the moment?
- I would name Kazaishvili. He’s in the US now. I’ve played together with him since the age of six, I know his talent and his ability on the field. Chakvetadze as well - he is in Belgium now, some big-name clubs want to buy him at age 19. I suppose that he will join big-time adult football very soon.
- In 2013, Henrikh Mkhitaryan sang in front of the capacity crowd at the Donbass Arena. Would you be able to sing in the packed stadium?
- Yes, I guess I’d also be able to sing at the Donbass Arena. I would even dance there. The most important thing for us is to return there, to play and become the champions! Despite my terrible voice and weak musical ability, I would still sing there.
- What are your three football strengths and weaknesses?
- Strengths: I’m strong in duels, my headers are great and I’m fast for a central defender. Weaknesses: I need to improve launching attacks, my long balls and consistency.
- What’s your dream team of the footballers you played with?
- Pyatov, Srna, Kashiya, Rakitskyy, Ismaily, Stepanenko, Marlos, Chakvetadze, Kazaishvili, Taison, Teixeira.
- The dream team of current world players?
- Oblak, Alexander-Arnold, Ramos, Van Dijk, Marcelo, Modric, Kroos, Messi, Ronaldo, Suarez, Aguero.
- The coaches try to send us some updated exercises, we train together via videoconferencing. I spend more time with my family, I cook more often, I read books and watch movies. I’m learning to play the piano a bit. My girlfriend plays well, she teaches me some of it. I haven’t made any progress yet, but I hope to do it better soon.
- How do you train via videoconferencing?
- The coach goes online and sends us a link. There are many windows in the application. We are better adapted now, while at the very beginning of quarantine, when we didn’t have time to buy some football equipment, we used toilet paper rolls or five-litre PET bottles instead of cones. It was a bit hard intially, but everyone got used to it, we bought exercise bikes and treadmills.
- What’s the coronavirus situation in Georgia?
- Quarantine measures are much tougher there. To differ from Ukraine where you can wear a mask outdoors, for about a week you couldn’t even get around by car in Georgia. People wear not only masks, but also a kind of plastic screens to protect their eyes and noses. And, as far as I know, they still have a curfew from 21:00 till 6:00 to limit travelling as much as possible.
- Are there any predictions regarding the end of quarantine in Ukraine and what will happen to football?
- I think they will ease quarantine measures in about 10 days, and on May 12, people will start working so that the economy does not suffer that much. All businesses suffer massive losses. We will probably have to wear masks for quite a long time, maybe for a year. It seems to me that if the Championship, the Champions League and the Europa League resume, during the rest of the season we will definitely play behind closed doors.
- What’s the most unusual present you received from the fans?
- A tablespoon with my name on it after the match.
- What one rule in football would you change?
- Hard question. Probably I wouldn’t change anything. Maybe I would just remove the VAR. Over time, everything has improved in football, and now, I think, its rules are just perfect.
- Who’s the fastest one at Shakhtar?
- Without the ball, Dodo’s the one. He’s really fast. I remember that we had trials at the base, a 30-metre race. Everybody covered the distance with 3.8 to 3.9 seconds, while Dodo just dashed and finished it in 3.58 seconds! It seemed to me that this is faster than a world record. But besides him, there is another person who runs with the ball much faster than without it - that’s Taison. It’s just impossible to catch up with him if he runs with the ball.
- What do you hear most often from Pyatov during the match?
- He prompts all the time: left, right, forward, backward, behind the back. It feels like he has been sitting on my shoulder throughout the game! It helps the defenders, we need those prompts.
- What was your reaction when Shakhtar offered you to sign a deal?
- I have long known that Shakhtar were following me and wanted to sign a contract. I played in Odesa then, so they attended those games and watched me. So that wasn’t new to me, I got used to it. Of course, I was glad, but didn’t experience any shock because I was also getting ready for that.
- Do you feel like a foreigner at Shakhtar?
- Nope. Many people at the club say that I’m no foreigner at all. But sometimes it’s beneficial to take advantage of that. Suppose, after a vacation, the foreigners arrive a day later. While I always need to get back on the same date with the Ukrainians. I call the doctor and say: I'm a foreign player, give me one more day! But they never do.
- What would you choose: to win the World Cup with the national team of Georgia or the Champions League with Shakhtar?
- I think that Georgia are less likely to win the World Cup than Shakhtar are to win the Champions League title. So, if I need to choose between those, let it be the first option. Because Shakhtar have every chance of winning in the Champions League.
- What’s your most cherished dream as a player of Georgia?
- From short-term objectives - to reach the European Championship. Georgia have never made it to any big tournaments, but now we have a very good chance. Meanwhile, we need to win two games, though I don’t know when they will be held.
- They say that Georgians have fast and ‘technical’ legs due to national dances. Is it true?
- I now understand why my legs aren’t fast at all - I didn’t dance. As a child, I attended karate classes for a year and a half. After that, I still stretch well, because they pulled the muscles using force, so later I experienced no muscle problems at all.
- Khachapuri or khinkali?
- I haven’t eaten that for so long! I would pick khachapuri now. I can eat khinkali just once in every six months, only on my vacation when I fly back to Tbilisi. I can’t try it in Ukraine, because the quality is absolutely different.
- What are your favourite spots in Tbilisi?
- The Turtle Lake. It’s near my house, in the morning you can walk, run. Also, there’s a good café called Stamba where many of my relatives and friends gather together. And the third favourite spot, of course, is my home.
- Would you advise some locations in Georgia: what places should people visit?
- In the summer it’s great to walk around in Batumi: a very good sea, the city, a lot of people, restaurants. Tbilisi is pleased to welcome guests all year round. I can tell you one secret: when you fly to Georgia for the first time, they give you a bottle of wine right at the customs.
- What TV series did you watch during quarantine? Could you recommend the best one.
- I’ve watched absolutely everything! From the latest on Netflix, the good one is Ozark. From classic ones, I would suggest Game of Thrones. Plus Homeland and Vikings. I think that’ll be enough for two or three weeks.
- What coach would you like to work with in the future?
- Probably with Klopp. I like the way he sets up the team and their morale.
- What are the top 5 central defenders in the history of football?
- Maldini, Nesta, Ramos, Chivadze, and Cannavaro.
- Who’s the best Georgian player at the moment?
- I would name Kazaishvili. He’s in the US now. I’ve played together with him since the age of six, I know his talent and his ability on the field. Chakvetadze as well - he is in Belgium now, some big-name clubs want to buy him at age 19. I suppose that he will join big-time adult football very soon.
- In 2013, Henrikh Mkhitaryan sang in front of the capacity crowd at the Donbass Arena. Would you be able to sing in the packed stadium?
- Yes, I guess I’d also be able to sing at the Donbass Arena. I would even dance there. The most important thing for us is to return there, to play and become the champions! Despite my terrible voice and weak musical ability, I would still sing there.
- What are your three football strengths and weaknesses?
- Strengths: I’m strong in duels, my headers are great and I’m fast for a central defender. Weaknesses: I need to improve launching attacks, my long balls and consistency.
- What’s your dream team of the footballers you played with?
- Pyatov, Srna, Kashiya, Rakitskyy, Ismaily, Stepanenko, Marlos, Chakvetadze, Kazaishvili, Taison, Teixeira.
- The dream team of current world players?
- Oblak, Alexander-Arnold, Ramos, Van Dijk, Marcelo, Modric, Kroos, Messi, Ronaldo, Suarez, Aguero.