Former Dynamo Kyiv forward Viktor Leonenko shared his thoughts on the situation in which Ukrainian Real Madrid goalkeeper Andriy Lunin is currently facing.
Viktor Leonenko- Viktor Yevhenovych, Lunin's agent Mendes has had a falling out with Real Madrid and is persuading Andriy to leave the Madrid club. What do you think, will Mendes ruin Lunin's career with such actions, maybe the goalkeeper wanted to realize himself at Real Madrid?
- A good agent is always on the side of the player and earns money for him by getting the best possible deal. An agent, by and large, is a lawyer. If Mendes is a bad agent, then Lunin was stupid to hire him. It's his fault, not the agent's.
There is so much written about Lunin now that it seems to me he has already overtaken Mishka 70 (referring to Mikhail Mudryk - ed.). My opinion is that if Lunin wants to play, he needs to leave Real Madrid. And if he wants to sit in the reserves again, then let him stay. Maybe Lunin wants to make friends with Mbappe, I don't know.
- According to the Spanish media, Chelsea want to exchange Lunin for Kepa with a surcharge. Do you think this is a good option for Andriy?
- Let him go to Chelsea if he wants to play! He will be in the main lineup there. Or to another club where he will be the main one. Lunin is a good goalkeeper. The fact that he lets in a lot of shots is something that many goalkeepers do.
- Will Lunin's arrival at Chelsea help Mudryk open up, given that his national teammate will be there?
- How will it help him? Lunin will only help the defenders if he pulls. Lunin will not teach Mudryk tactics and football nuances. But they will probably be friends. It was not easy for Zavarov at Juventus alone, and he had to play as well as Platini when he finished his career. And now everyone speaks English, so communication is easier, although they play no better than we did in the 90s.
- Returning to our topic, do you think agents are evil or good in football?
- If an agent is a normal person and a professional who protects the rights of football players, then, of course, it is good. Sometimes a player or a coach is of no use to anyone, and an agent still finds something for him. And then there are agents who are scoundrels, who have a lot of connections and just sell players.
- Is Shabliy a good agent or a crook?
- Just take a guess(laughs). Although I don't know, many footballers sign a contract with him, but I would never sign one in my life. In my time, there were no agents at all, and contracts were signed - "papers", without a signature and a seal. If a player got an agent, six months were added to the contract at once.
- How did you negotiate your terms at Dynamo Kyiv?
- No way, just verbal agreements, we trusted each other, and that was it. In my case, I just had to play well. I was treated well, I played in Dynamo's first team and did a lot for the team - scored and gave assists.
- Did Dynamo ever "cheat" you out of money, given that your contracts were nothing?
- No, never! I don't know how it was with other players, but I was always paid on time, as promised, and never cheated. They just didn't let me go, even though Lobanovsky didn't really need me. That was the problem.
Andrii Piskun
