I’m happy to be back on the pitch and thanks to everyone who helped!
Wednesday, November 29, 2023
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Shakhtar midfielder Artem Bondarenko reflects on his return after injury, victory over Antwerp and fan support in Hamburg
– Artem, congratulations on the win! And we congratulate you personally on your return to the field, everyone is happy to see you in the game. Tell us about your impressions of the match.
– First of all, thank you, because I'm actually very happy to be back! I missed the team and this month was quite difficult for me: I trained 24 hours a day, did everything to return as soon as possible. I want to thank everyone who was involved in my recovery who fussed over me, who treated me and did everything for me, I really appreciate it and I thank these people who helped me come back. Regarding the match, we are very happy to win and secure a place in the Europa League, but it is not the maximum goal. We know our next goal and will move towards it. I hope everything will work out. We won despite the fact that the field was of difficult, but we showed mettle and everything turned out the way it should.
– I would also like to ask about your health: does the injury you had bother you?
– It doesn't, but it's hard to come back after a month's break. Now I have to gradually work on the field, but I think it will get better every day.
– What was the general plan of Marino Pusic for this game and did the team manage to follow it?
– The plan was to always control the ball and the game. But the field was really very difficult, everyone understood that there was no need to risk because beautiful football is beautiful football, but we were there for result. Therefore, in some moments we did not make it difficult and played more reliably and simply. In general, we have the result, so everything is fine.
– Currently, the UPL matches are a bit more difficult for Shakhtar than the Champions League ones. Why is it so?
– It’s hard to say. In the championship, the teams drop deep, sometimes we lack some sharpness in the final part. But I think everything will be fine: there are difficult matches, but the team do everything to progress, follow the coach's instructions and achieve a positive result.
– Germany has become Shakhtar's home for this Champions League. Did you feel the support of fans?
– Yes, of course, I felt it. And we are very grateful that we receive support in any country we play. Therefore, we can only sincerely say thank you once again, we appreciate it.
– First of all, thank you, because I'm actually very happy to be back! I missed the team and this month was quite difficult for me: I trained 24 hours a day, did everything to return as soon as possible. I want to thank everyone who was involved in my recovery who fussed over me, who treated me and did everything for me, I really appreciate it and I thank these people who helped me come back. Regarding the match, we are very happy to win and secure a place in the Europa League, but it is not the maximum goal. We know our next goal and will move towards it. I hope everything will work out. We won despite the fact that the field was of difficult, but we showed mettle and everything turned out the way it should.
– I would also like to ask about your health: does the injury you had bother you?
– It doesn't, but it's hard to come back after a month's break. Now I have to gradually work on the field, but I think it will get better every day.
– What was the general plan of Marino Pusic for this game and did the team manage to follow it?
– The plan was to always control the ball and the game. But the field was really very difficult, everyone understood that there was no need to risk because beautiful football is beautiful football, but we were there for result. Therefore, in some moments we did not make it difficult and played more reliably and simply. In general, we have the result, so everything is fine.
– Currently, the UPL matches are a bit more difficult for Shakhtar than the Champions League ones. Why is it so?
– It’s hard to say. In the championship, the teams drop deep, sometimes we lack some sharpness in the final part. But I think everything will be fine: there are difficult matches, but the team do everything to progress, follow the coach's instructions and achieve a positive result.
– Germany has become Shakhtar's home for this Champions League. Did you feel the support of fans?
– Yes, of course, I felt it. And we are very grateful that we receive support in any country we play. Therefore, we can only sincerely say thank you once again, we appreciate it.