Head coach of Shakhtar Donetsk Marino Pusic commented on his team’s defeat in a friendly match against Lviv “Rukh” (1:3).
– Mister, Shakhtar played a friendly match with Rukh. What can you say about this game?
– Firstly, it was important for me to play this match, because I wanted to see other players in action in order to better understand their capabilities. Secondly, most football players need practice and playing time. The game is a game: it was difficult, there were a lot of fouls, but this is part of the game. Must adapt. I think we had a lot of good and bad moments. We shouldn’t concede three goals at this level. But, unfortunately, this happened, so we need to learn from mistakes. Most of the players who took to the field had not played much during the season, so they were out of a certain rhythm of the game. I don’t blame anyone in any way, these are learning moments. I liked the energy of the team. The guys did their best, worked hard, but it turned out that this was not enough to win. A very useful game for us, we saw a lot. We tried to put in a lot of energy.
– What are the main causes of defeat?
– We gave the opponent two goals – it’s simple. Of course, these are mistakes, but we win and lose together. Rudko is a wonderful goalkeeper, a good person. He tried to adhere to all the principles that we want to see in a build-up. Of course, sometimes you have to make a choice whether to play through short or long passes, but we learn from this. I saw that the team made an effort, tried to implement our principles with and without the ball as productively as possible. I’m glad we played this game. I note that the opponent had moments, especially in the first half, when we acted very openly. However, we also created chances in the second half and perhaps in the first, for example the episode with Shved. However, there is no need to analyze the match from this point of view: for me it is important to see the players in the game and better understand their capabilities. That’s all. It’s not about the result at all. Of course, when we go on the field, we strive to win, but for me the most important thing was to look at the players so that I know what I can count on and what I need to work on.
– What is your training schedule now? What have you been doing in the last few days?
– We continue to train every day. On Tuesday, training camps will return; the squad that played against Rukh will hold a recovery session. On Wednesday we will all get together and start preparing for the next fight.
– You saw the players of the youth team. What can you say about their qualities and potential?
– I can’t say much, because it was a very short period of time. Gave three of them the opportunity to play. It is clear that they want to play, to compete, like every young footballer, there is potential for progress. You should work hard to improve your abilities. They are talented and will sometimes train with us.
– Eguinaldo was injured in the match against Rukh. What is the current state of his health? We saw how you went out onto the field to stand up for him.
– Yes, because it was a very unpleasant foul – from behind, without the intention of touching the ball. It is very dangerous. In my opinion there should have been a red card. That case was not the first, there were many like this. I didn’t like it, because of this hit from behind we lost one player. I wanted to tell the referee that this is no way to play the game. Eguinaldo is injured and out. We don’t know for how long.
– We have a match with Polesye ahead. What can you say about the opponent and what schedule the team will be preparing for?
– I already said regarding the schedule: we have training planned on Wednesday and Thursday in full force, when everyone returns. We will work on tactics for this game. What can I say about my opponent? A good team, because they are also fighting for high places in the table. A difficult match awaits us.
#lost #Rukh #gave #goals
2023-11-21 15:39:00
