Organisation, discipline, character, mentality were at a high level
Sunday, April 14, 2024
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Head coach of Shakhtar Marino Pusic assessed the game against Vorskla at the post-match press conference (1-0)
– Shakhtar were forced to rebuild after the send-off in the second half, it led to fewer attacks. There were some attacks but without particular conclusion. Did Shakhtar work on playing in the minority?
– When you play with one less player under these circumstances, you cannot always attack because you have one less player on the pitch. Then you have to be very organised, close the gaps when the opponent wants to convert certain moments – and we did it perfectly. But I am going to tell you the story of this game so that you do not have any questions. Look, I am very proud of my team, the way we played in the first 55 minutes, it was high-class football. The only thing I can say is that we really should have scored one or two more goals. But it is football. We were in the lead, we played very well, we started the second half very well, we controlled the game, and then there was that episode when we got the red card. And then the moment came when you have to defend much more than you want to defend. But even then we tried to create moments, although of course it was not possible because we had one less player. But what we showed in the second part of the game when we played with one less player: the defensive organisation, structure, discipline, character, mentality – were also at a high level. So that is the part of the game, you cannot attack all the time when you have one player less, especially under those circumstances.
– Shakhtar lost 1-2 in the previous match against Vorskla, and it was the last match for Patrick van Leeuwen. Before that, Shakhtar also lost to Vorskla at the end of the championship, and although there were slightly different circumstances, but that match was also the last for Igor Jovicevic. Were you not scared of the result before today’s match?
– I will tell you honestly: I am not a coach who looks back at what happened before me, I am only concentrated on what is happening when I am here. I have no comment about that. I know it is a difficult game to play away, I have to say that the pitch is also not very nice for playing football. But you have to adapt to the circumstances, which we did. And I can only say that when you play this kind of games, you need to show certain things, like I already explained to your colleague, and we did it. And it is what I am talking about: I know nothing about the past, because it is not my past. When I move to a club, I do not care about its past, I just go, I have my vision, my style of play and I expect a certain attitude from people – that is it. So I cannot judge what happened before me. I am very happy because it is not so easy to win such games, away games, especially when you play almost 40–45 minutes with one less player. So I have to give credit to Vorskla – they are a good team, they also can play, they have individually strong players, and I understand why teams lose to them. But we did a tremendous job today, we are in a good mood, and I think that in the part when we had eleven players, we played very good football.
– Congratulations on the victory! But today Shakhtar showed an unusual game for them: in the first half you acted narrowly, there was no opening of the wings, and you spent the second half in your own part of the field. Is it fatigue or something else?
– In some part I agree with you: we could use the wings more, but we also created goal-scoring moments and chances from the wings, so you cannot always play through the wings. We play Shakhtar’s football, but improving it all the time, adding other things. Like I already said to your colleague, in the second half we had one less player, so what did you expect? It is impossible to attack all the time, because this is natural if you play in a low and compact block. And that is the part we develop a lot to be able to defend well if it is necessary. It is also the part of the game, it is an important detail for the team under these circumstances. So I think that we played very well in all aspects. And it is not easy to show playmaking style on this pitch. Have you been on this pitch? I would like you to go outside on this pitch, and if you come back without breaking your leg, I will celebrate with you.
– First of all, congratulations on the victory! Maybe it is not the right question for today’s match, but this topic has been coming up recently: what are your thoughts on stimulation in football? Your personal opinion: is it OK or bad? For example, when Dynamo Kyiv stimulates another team to beat Shakhtar.
– Thank you. Look, I said one time that if you are a big club, and we are a big club, then everybody is always 100 percent stimulated to compete with you. We are sportspeople, you know. And of course, someone will have an additional motivation, but I am just focused on my team, I do not care what they do, stimulation, etc. I am just focused on my own team, that is who I am. I experience until now that everyone gives maybe more than 110–120 percent in the game against Shakhtar, which is legitimate. But I do not care about that, I focus on my team, I always say that we need to work harder than the opponent to make a difference in quality. So, you can stimulate the team as much as you want, but the result is always up to us. And I always look at us: at how we act in the game, how we react to the situations, what energy we have. So I do not care about stimulation, it does not bother me at all.
– Sudakov limped off the field. How serious is his injury? Also, tell us when to expect the return of Eguinaldo and Rakitskyi?
– They were injured again, Yaroslav and Eguinaldo, so, unfortunately, they were not able to be with us. But we expect them to be back on the pitch in a couple of days and continue working with the team. Now they are following an individual programme because when you have a repeated injury, you need more time to get back to team's sessions. So they are making steps, but they are not ready yet. As for Sudakov, we will see tomorrow. I have to say that in the case of players like Sudakov, the opponents always try to challenge him, make fouls on him, and you saw the first half – this kind of fouls, you have to re-watch it. Look, we play football for such players, and we have many of them, such performers who can play football beautifully. And we need to protect them, not to allow “killing” tackles and other things, to which they do not react at all, because we need to protect football. And this is what I ask: to protect football. And that is the question. And then I hear from all of you about it. Yes, he got injured. And do you like that he got injured, one of the most important players of the national team? I am not saying that he cannot be tackled. You can tackle, of course. We play a tough game, but there are limits in tough games. And I wanted to see those limits today, and not the red card we received when Zubkov tried to get the ball from the rebound. It is not protecting the game, it is destroying the game. That is what I wanted to say, I have nothing more to add.
– When you play with one less player under these circumstances, you cannot always attack because you have one less player on the pitch. Then you have to be very organised, close the gaps when the opponent wants to convert certain moments – and we did it perfectly. But I am going to tell you the story of this game so that you do not have any questions. Look, I am very proud of my team, the way we played in the first 55 minutes, it was high-class football. The only thing I can say is that we really should have scored one or two more goals. But it is football. We were in the lead, we played very well, we started the second half very well, we controlled the game, and then there was that episode when we got the red card. And then the moment came when you have to defend much more than you want to defend. But even then we tried to create moments, although of course it was not possible because we had one less player. But what we showed in the second part of the game when we played with one less player: the defensive organisation, structure, discipline, character, mentality – were also at a high level. So that is the part of the game, you cannot attack all the time when you have one player less, especially under those circumstances.
– Shakhtar lost 1-2 in the previous match against Vorskla, and it was the last match for Patrick van Leeuwen. Before that, Shakhtar also lost to Vorskla at the end of the championship, and although there were slightly different circumstances, but that match was also the last for Igor Jovicevic. Were you not scared of the result before today’s match?
– I will tell you honestly: I am not a coach who looks back at what happened before me, I am only concentrated on what is happening when I am here. I have no comment about that. I know it is a difficult game to play away, I have to say that the pitch is also not very nice for playing football. But you have to adapt to the circumstances, which we did. And I can only say that when you play this kind of games, you need to show certain things, like I already explained to your colleague, and we did it. And it is what I am talking about: I know nothing about the past, because it is not my past. When I move to a club, I do not care about its past, I just go, I have my vision, my style of play and I expect a certain attitude from people – that is it. So I cannot judge what happened before me. I am very happy because it is not so easy to win such games, away games, especially when you play almost 40–45 minutes with one less player. So I have to give credit to Vorskla – they are a good team, they also can play, they have individually strong players, and I understand why teams lose to them. But we did a tremendous job today, we are in a good mood, and I think that in the part when we had eleven players, we played very good football.
– Congratulations on the victory! But today Shakhtar showed an unusual game for them: in the first half you acted narrowly, there was no opening of the wings, and you spent the second half in your own part of the field. Is it fatigue or something else?
– In some part I agree with you: we could use the wings more, but we also created goal-scoring moments and chances from the wings, so you cannot always play through the wings. We play Shakhtar’s football, but improving it all the time, adding other things. Like I already said to your colleague, in the second half we had one less player, so what did you expect? It is impossible to attack all the time, because this is natural if you play in a low and compact block. And that is the part we develop a lot to be able to defend well if it is necessary. It is also the part of the game, it is an important detail for the team under these circumstances. So I think that we played very well in all aspects. And it is not easy to show playmaking style on this pitch. Have you been on this pitch? I would like you to go outside on this pitch, and if you come back without breaking your leg, I will celebrate with you.
– First of all, congratulations on the victory! Maybe it is not the right question for today’s match, but this topic has been coming up recently: what are your thoughts on stimulation in football? Your personal opinion: is it OK or bad? For example, when Dynamo Kyiv stimulates another team to beat Shakhtar.
– Thank you. Look, I said one time that if you are a big club, and we are a big club, then everybody is always 100 percent stimulated to compete with you. We are sportspeople, you know. And of course, someone will have an additional motivation, but I am just focused on my team, I do not care what they do, stimulation, etc. I am just focused on my own team, that is who I am. I experience until now that everyone gives maybe more than 110–120 percent in the game against Shakhtar, which is legitimate. But I do not care about that, I focus on my team, I always say that we need to work harder than the opponent to make a difference in quality. So, you can stimulate the team as much as you want, but the result is always up to us. And I always look at us: at how we act in the game, how we react to the situations, what energy we have. So I do not care about stimulation, it does not bother me at all.
– Sudakov limped off the field. How serious is his injury? Also, tell us when to expect the return of Eguinaldo and Rakitskyi?
– They were injured again, Yaroslav and Eguinaldo, so, unfortunately, they were not able to be with us. But we expect them to be back on the pitch in a couple of days and continue working with the team. Now they are following an individual programme because when you have a repeated injury, you need more time to get back to team's sessions. So they are making steps, but they are not ready yet. As for Sudakov, we will see tomorrow. I have to say that in the case of players like Sudakov, the opponents always try to challenge him, make fouls on him, and you saw the first half – this kind of fouls, you have to re-watch it. Look, we play football for such players, and we have many of them, such performers who can play football beautifully. And we need to protect them, not to allow “killing” tackles and other things, to which they do not react at all, because we need to protect football. And this is what I ask: to protect football. And that is the question. And then I hear from all of you about it. Yes, he got injured. And do you like that he got injured, one of the most important players of the national team? I am not saying that he cannot be tackled. You can tackle, of course. We play a tough game, but there are limits in tough games. And I wanted to see those limits today, and not the red card we received when Zubkov tried to get the ball from the rebound. It is not protecting the game, it is destroying the game. That is what I wanted to say, I have nothing more to add.