In an exclusive interview with Dynamo.kiev.ua, Pakhtakor Tashkent head coach Maksym Shatskikh told what he thinks about the upcoming friendly match with his former team, Dynamo Kyiv, at the preparatory training camp in Turkey. We shall remind you that this sparring will take place next Tuesday, 30 January.
- How far is Pakhtakor based in Turkey from Dynamo camp?
- All teams are relatively close to each other. It takes us about 10 minutes to get to Dynamo camp.
- How closely did you follow Dynamo of this season?
- Of course, I can't say that I have seen all the matches of Dynamo this season, it's not always possible, we are in different zones, but at the end of the first part of the season I saw almost all the matches of the team.
The change of the head coach always has its impact. The emotional background changes, the motivation of the players. But the main thing is that the team showed good results at the end of the year. So the change of the coach, probably, did Dynamo good. I won`t say anything confidently, and I can`t, as I`m not inside the club. But, judging by the results, the change of the head coach refreshed the team, gave it a boost.
- You and Shovkovskiy played many matches on the pitch in Dynamo. How did you perceive the fact that he became the head coach of the team? After all, goalkeepers do not often start their independent coaching careers.
- I do not agree with the last statement. I don`t see anything unusual here. As far as I know, there are a lot of former goalkeepers studying for a Pro coaching licence. On the other hand, I always thought that Shovkovskiy would be a football top manager, as he himself, in general, made it clear. Apparently, then Sasha rethought his goals for the future.
I think Shovkovskiy will do well. In any case, I know for sure that he never wanted to be a goalkeeper coach. I repeat, in those days he saw himself in the future in a managerial position, a manager, a functionary, but definitely not a goalkeepers coach. Probably, over the years, he enjoyed coaching. And it is absolutely normal that he has already become the head coach of Dynamo.
- Can you single out anyone in the current Dynamo squad?
- In general, the team's lineup has not changed much lately. Shaparenko is still there, Buyalsky.... Popov started to play again, he tries to look confident. Vanat appeared, he is trying very hard, it can be seen.
- Pakhtakor played with Dynamo at the last winter training camp and won with the score 1:0. What was memorable about that match?
- The score of that match did not matter to me. I can say the same about the upcoming match. Because at the training camp the emphasis is completely different. The training camp is preparation, not the results of sparring. Yes, we always want to win, but now we have a systematic preparation, and this is what is in the foreground. It is clear that it is always nice to beat Dynamo Kyiv. At the same time, as Valeriy Vasilyevich Lobanovsky said, there are matches in which victory is important, but not at any price.
- Do you follow the Ukrainian championship? If yes, how do you like the fight in the current championship?
- I try to follow. If I have time. Sometimes I watch some matches on tape. Of course, the Ukrainian championship has changed a lot. Some matches now last five hours. What can you do, these are the current realities.....
As for the sporting component, the tournament has become more even. You can't beat anyone so easily. Any team from the bottom of the standings can beat the leader. The competition in the championship has grown considerably. There was no such thing before. In my times, the leaders always stood out - Dynamo, Shakhtar, Dnipro, Zorya, Metalist. A lot of things were decided by legionnaires, which we had a lot of. Now everything has changed. Everything is equalised. On the one hand, it is good. On the other hand - Ukraine loses points in European cups, and then it will be hard to get to the top.
But the most important thing is that the war is over. This is the most important thing. And it is very good that despite all the horror of the situation, football in Ukraine continues to exist. And it does not matter in what format. Football is there, Ukraine is there, and that is the main thing now. The rest, I am sure, Ukrainian football will catch up and everything will return to normal.
Alexander POPOV