Shakhtar Donetsk head coach Patrick van Leeuwen commented on the outcome of the friendly match with Tottenham (1:5).
Patrick van Leeuwen. Photo: shakhtar.com- The match in London contained an important message for the whole of Ukraine. What can you say about such a charitable initiative?
- I think it is a fantastic initiative to remind the world that the war continues. And for football - we have a lot of spectators from different countries, so it is a good experience for us, players and coaches.
- What was the atmosphere in the stadium like, how did you feel?
- It's been a long time since we played in front of the fans, so it's a great experience to play in an almost full stadium again.
- If you now analyse the match from the point of view of practice before the Champions League, how did it turn out for the team?
- I think that we are still developing, and such confrontations with strong teams, as well as during the whole off-season, give us, the coaching staff, a lot of information. We also have an opportunity to see where we are and what we need to improve, if we face teams of Champions League level.
- Now Shakhtar have a lot of young players and new players. How is their adaptation going?
- The young players, who took to the pitch in the second half, showed courage and showed that they are not afraid to play in such an atmosphere. In my opinion, they have progressed during the off-season when they spent a month with the whole team and with the new young players in the last two weeks. I think they are doing well, they are adapting well and as people they are blending in well, which is also ideal for us.
- There were a lot of Ukrainian fans in the stands, even more Ukrainians watched the broadcast of the match. Perhaps you had something to say to them?
- Of course, there are a lot of Ukrainians in all countries, and especially at this game I saw a lot of Ukrainian flags in the stadium. This is what we need now and will also need during the European campaign: for Ukrainians to come to the matches of Shakhtar and other teams that play in European cups and represent Ukraine.
