Big disappointment

– Mister, first of all, I want to wish: let this defeat be the beginning of something good. Tell us, how painful has it been for you today as the coach of Shakhtar Donetsk? (Sportyvne misto – Lviv portal)
– Thank you very much, I wish you the same. Well, it feels like a big disappointment, of course, because unfortunately we can talk a lot about football tonight, but it was obvious that the decisions made by the referees today had a very big impact on the game and its result. I am not the kind of person who will think a lot about it, but it is very obvious. A big disappointment. But life goes on, and we need to deal with this disappointment and move on to the next game, which is more important than the match that we have already played. We cannot change anything. But it is a big disappointment, especially in terms of the decisions the referees made this evening. And maybe I can explain that later answering your next questions.

– Did you start making substitutions too late during today’s match– you fielded four players at once? And the second question: did Sudakov’s micro-injury in the first half of the match still affect his role on the field, as he worked less with the ball, unlike in previous matches? (Sportyvne misto – Lviv portal)
– It could have, I do not know. As for the substitutions: I think they were timely, because at that moment we were playing very well. And then, unfortunately, we conceded a third goal out of nothing, and then we decided to make substitutions. We had a good rhythm, we started the second half very well, I think we created a lot of chances, we scored a goal – and the VAR referee disallowed it, so… It is a very strange decision, which disrupted the rhythm of the game of the team that was pushing at that moment. Look, we can talk about a lot of things: the guys who came on as substitutes did a very good job: they scored a goal, they created several opportunities as well. We played an all-or-nothing game then, we had to do it. One more time, it is not about the game in general, it is really about the decisions, because referees always have an influence in this aspect. So if you do not give a penalty to a team in the first five minutes when it was an obvious, clear penalty, and then you disallow a clear goal in the second half and you are not sure if it was offside, you should always give the advantage to the attacking team because we have the video too. Also, it took 10–15 minutes, I do not know exactly how long, it completely destroyed the rhythm of the game, which again was to our disadvantage. I am not going to talk about other elements of the game anymore. And, unfortunately, with such an influence on our game, it is impossible to play against such things. I feel sorry for talking about this, because it is absolutely not my style, but if there is such influence and decisions, it is impossible not to talk about these things. That is the story of the game, and we are moving on, to answer the first part of your question. Yes, we are moving on, we will become even stronger, and we are not done with this season yet. We have enough fighting spirit and we will show it in the upcoming matches.