I’m proud of my career at Shakhtar
Wednesday, September 27, 2023
|
Midfielder and captain of the Miners Taras Stepanenko shared his impressions of his milestone game
– Taras, congratulations on your 400th appearance for Shakhtar! What does this number mean to you?
– Thank you, it's very nice! I was told this three rounds ago, I didn't even expect it to be honest. It seems like there were 350 games not long ago, and now there are 400. It is almost my entire football life. I have been at Shakhtar for so many years, and it is a matter of pride for me. I am proud of the fact that I have such a career, that I have been in one club for so many years, played so many matches, helped, that we had both defeats and victories. I went through a lot with the club: from Donetsk to Kyiv, now from Kyiv to all of Europe; we visited so many places, overcame so many difficulties, so many people changed... This is my story and I will remember it for the rest of my life.
– Currently, you are the leader and captain of Shakhtar. What do you teach young players and do you share your own experience with them?
– Yes, of course. I try to keep my emotions to myself because I used to be very emotional, and now, when the boys perceive something emotionally, I try to calm them down, tell them, explain that sometimes you should look at life and certain events from a different angle. If we take some football moments, I also try to explain and give hints as every year new footballers come who do not yet fully understand the principles of our play, how to act on the field, what to do, so they need advice. That is, I now have such a role in the team – to keep the boys as one and help them grow.
– You have already been through and achieved a lot. Are there any football dreams left?
– My main dream, I don't know if I will live to see this moment as a footballer or already as a veteran, is to play at the Donbas Arena. I also have my goals, but I don't want to talk about them yet. I still have health, I still have strength, and as long as I feel that I am competitive, that I really help the club not by some talk, but by doing things that are adequate on and off the field, as long as I feel this way, I will continue to play football. When I hear or understand that it is time to go, I will calmly end my career.
– For the team, it is the first match of the season in the Ukrainian Cup. What are your impressions of the game?
– The first half turned out so fuzzy: somewhere we did not read the play, we gave the opponents too many opportunities to orchestrate counterattacks. In the second half, the coaching staff made adjustments, we began to act more aggressively, and it's good that we scored a goal. When you play against teams that have a deep defence, it's really important to score. And when you score, they start to open up, which we have seen on the field. They exposed themselves and we already had enough chances, we could have scored more. I would like the team to play like that from the first minutes and get the result earlier.
– Can the fatigue factor affect the game now as you are playing in the Ukrainian Championship, the Cup, and the Champions League?
– Sure. To be honest, I was very tired after the match against Rukh: we played with ten men from the beginning, ran a lot, besides, there was some kind of virus – half of the team had a fever, the boys are still sick. I felt very bad in that match and, as they say, ended the game through will and mettle. I am very grateful that I have not played since the first minutes because it is tough. We need rotations: we have a lot of footballers, we need to let everyone play so that the boys can prove themselves. Then there will be competition, and fresh blood, and emotions – there will be the result we need.
– And once again to the milestone: you received congratulations in the dressing room after the match. How was it exactly?
– Mr Palkin, Darijo Srna, and our head coach gave me a jersey featuring 400 Apps lettering. The team congratulated me. I am very grateful! It is really nice. I knew it would be my 400th appearance if I went on the field, but I didn't expect to receive compliments like this. It was very emotional. Thank you!
– Thank you, it's very nice! I was told this three rounds ago, I didn't even expect it to be honest. It seems like there were 350 games not long ago, and now there are 400. It is almost my entire football life. I have been at Shakhtar for so many years, and it is a matter of pride for me. I am proud of the fact that I have such a career, that I have been in one club for so many years, played so many matches, helped, that we had both defeats and victories. I went through a lot with the club: from Donetsk to Kyiv, now from Kyiv to all of Europe; we visited so many places, overcame so many difficulties, so many people changed... This is my story and I will remember it for the rest of my life.
– Currently, you are the leader and captain of Shakhtar. What do you teach young players and do you share your own experience with them?
– Yes, of course. I try to keep my emotions to myself because I used to be very emotional, and now, when the boys perceive something emotionally, I try to calm them down, tell them, explain that sometimes you should look at life and certain events from a different angle. If we take some football moments, I also try to explain and give hints as every year new footballers come who do not yet fully understand the principles of our play, how to act on the field, what to do, so they need advice. That is, I now have such a role in the team – to keep the boys as one and help them grow.
– You have already been through and achieved a lot. Are there any football dreams left?
– My main dream, I don't know if I will live to see this moment as a footballer or already as a veteran, is to play at the Donbas Arena. I also have my goals, but I don't want to talk about them yet. I still have health, I still have strength, and as long as I feel that I am competitive, that I really help the club not by some talk, but by doing things that are adequate on and off the field, as long as I feel this way, I will continue to play football. When I hear or understand that it is time to go, I will calmly end my career.
– For the team, it is the first match of the season in the Ukrainian Cup. What are your impressions of the game?
– The first half turned out so fuzzy: somewhere we did not read the play, we gave the opponents too many opportunities to orchestrate counterattacks. In the second half, the coaching staff made adjustments, we began to act more aggressively, and it's good that we scored a goal. When you play against teams that have a deep defence, it's really important to score. And when you score, they start to open up, which we have seen on the field. They exposed themselves and we already had enough chances, we could have scored more. I would like the team to play like that from the first minutes and get the result earlier.
– Can the fatigue factor affect the game now as you are playing in the Ukrainian Championship, the Cup, and the Champions League?
– Sure. To be honest, I was very tired after the match against Rukh: we played with ten men from the beginning, ran a lot, besides, there was some kind of virus – half of the team had a fever, the boys are still sick. I felt very bad in that match and, as they say, ended the game through will and mettle. I am very grateful that I have not played since the first minutes because it is tough. We need rotations: we have a lot of footballers, we need to let everyone play so that the boys can prove themselves. Then there will be competition, and fresh blood, and emotions – there will be the result we need.
– And once again to the milestone: you received congratulations in the dressing room after the match. How was it exactly?
– Mr Palkin, Darijo Srna, and our head coach gave me a jersey featuring 400 Apps lettering. The team congratulated me. I am very grateful! It is really nice. I knew it would be my 400th appearance if I went on the field, but I didn't expect to receive compliments like this. It was very emotional. Thank you!