We want to win six matches
Thursday, November 18, 2021
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Shakhtar head coach Roberto De Zerbi answered reporters’ questions at an open training session before the match against Rukh
- Mister, what is the staffing situation in the team? Pedrinho is back in the general group: is he ready to play against Rukh?
- Yes, Pedrinho returned to the general group two days ago and feels more or less well. He just needs to get used to it again, change the pace and movement during training. He might not appear in the starting lineup on Saturday, but he may be ready by the Champions League match.
- How is Moraes? When will Traore be operated on?
- Traore won't be back until next season, Moraes hasn't started training with us yet. I don’t know yet whether he will start before the winter break or after. We hope that Sikan, Pedrinho and Fernando will play well. Our team is strong even without Traore, although it’s clear that Lassina was a plus for us. Now we are in the top spot without him, and our desire is to finish the league campaign in the top spot.
- 11 Shakhtar players have been on international duty. How satisfied are you with their performance and what can you say about appointing Oleksandr Petrakov as the head coach of Ukraine and about the national team success?
- I’m really happy that Ukraine will have the opportunity to qualify for the FIFA World Cup finals. The players displayed a great match, especially Stepanenko and Matviienko. I wish the national team to get to the World Cup and I hope that they will not meet with Italy and Ukraine.
- Should we expect the main squad appear against Rukh or will there be rotation as the next meeting is against Inter in the Champions League?
- I don't think that the match against Rukh is less important than the one against Inter. Before the winter break, we’ll have four crucial league games. We want to score 12 points in them because, unfortunately, it’s impossible to get 13. Then we will think about the matches against Inter and Sheriff, trying to win both. If we gain two victories, every door will be open for us.
- Do you carry out any work on the transfer market? Yesterday, there was information about Shakhtar's interest in Argentina's top scorer Alvarez.
- We were thinking about Alvarez in July, but we didn’t sign him up because we made different conclusions. Now we are trying to finish the first part of the season in the best possible way, to play football well and even better. We want to win six matches, and then we'll see what we can do on the transfer market in January. Sometimes, if you want to improve your team, you run the risk of making it worse. We must surgically select the best solution for the club.
- In Ukraine there is a concept of winter football with frosts and snow. How unusual is it for you and what adjustments do you have to make?
- Yes, it’s very cold. It's like Christmas time to me. We will adapt and dress warmly.
- At the Santiago Bernabeu, everyone was applauding Mudryk. Have they ever applauded you? And what needs to be done in order to have the whole stadium applaud in Milan?
- Mudryk may appear both in Madrid and in Milan, as well as against Rukh. But he also may not appear, because we’ve got Solomon and other strong players. The most important thing about Mudryk is that we see his progress. He delivered a very good performance with Ukraine U21. It is a great pleasure for me and my coaching staff to see Mudryk play. When five months ago we were looking at Sudakov, Mudryk and Bondarenko, those were definitely not the players we have now. I want them to reach the level that we all hope them to showcase to me, to the club and Ukraine.
- Yes, Pedrinho returned to the general group two days ago and feels more or less well. He just needs to get used to it again, change the pace and movement during training. He might not appear in the starting lineup on Saturday, but he may be ready by the Champions League match.
- How is Moraes? When will Traore be operated on?
- Traore won't be back until next season, Moraes hasn't started training with us yet. I don’t know yet whether he will start before the winter break or after. We hope that Sikan, Pedrinho and Fernando will play well. Our team is strong even without Traore, although it’s clear that Lassina was a plus for us. Now we are in the top spot without him, and our desire is to finish the league campaign in the top spot.
- 11 Shakhtar players have been on international duty. How satisfied are you with their performance and what can you say about appointing Oleksandr Petrakov as the head coach of Ukraine and about the national team success?
- I’m really happy that Ukraine will have the opportunity to qualify for the FIFA World Cup finals. The players displayed a great match, especially Stepanenko and Matviienko. I wish the national team to get to the World Cup and I hope that they will not meet with Italy and Ukraine.
- Should we expect the main squad appear against Rukh or will there be rotation as the next meeting is against Inter in the Champions League?
- I don't think that the match against Rukh is less important than the one against Inter. Before the winter break, we’ll have four crucial league games. We want to score 12 points in them because, unfortunately, it’s impossible to get 13. Then we will think about the matches against Inter and Sheriff, trying to win both. If we gain two victories, every door will be open for us.
- Do you carry out any work on the transfer market? Yesterday, there was information about Shakhtar's interest in Argentina's top scorer Alvarez.
- We were thinking about Alvarez in July, but we didn’t sign him up because we made different conclusions. Now we are trying to finish the first part of the season in the best possible way, to play football well and even better. We want to win six matches, and then we'll see what we can do on the transfer market in January. Sometimes, if you want to improve your team, you run the risk of making it worse. We must surgically select the best solution for the club.
- In Ukraine there is a concept of winter football with frosts and snow. How unusual is it for you and what adjustments do you have to make?
- Yes, it’s very cold. It's like Christmas time to me. We will adapt and dress warmly.
- At the Santiago Bernabeu, everyone was applauding Mudryk. Have they ever applauded you? And what needs to be done in order to have the whole stadium applaud in Milan?
- Mudryk may appear both in Madrid and in Milan, as well as against Rukh. But he also may not appear, because we’ve got Solomon and other strong players. The most important thing about Mudryk is that we see his progress. He delivered a very good performance with Ukraine U21. It is a great pleasure for me and my coaching staff to see Mudryk play. When five months ago we were looking at Sudakov, Mudryk and Bondarenko, those were definitely not the players we have now. I want them to reach the level that we all hope them to showcase to me, to the club and Ukraine.