“The best climate for football, but not on other dates”

Dynamo Kiev coach Mircea Lucescu commented on the results of the first official match in 2021. The UPL team beat Olympic 3: 1.

– How did the weather conditions affect the game, was it difficult to play on a field like this?

– The best climate for football (smiles). Last year during this period, the weather was normal, probably they decided that this year it will be the same. But sadly, no luck with the weather. The European Championship will take place in June and we understand that we have to prepare well for it. There are no other dates for the championship. We need to mobilize everyone together and prepare the fields as well as possible so that the players can play football and avoid injuries.

– How would you rate the preparation of the team in training camp, what concerns you and what are you satisfied with?

– He was interested mainly in four components. In the first matches it was important to see the physical condition of the team and if the work was going well. The second aspect is the organization of the game in terms of tactics. This applies to the entire team. I rotated and always changed players. In the penultimate stage of the training and games process, I was interested in the attitude of the players towards the case, their professionalism and the level of intensity in the last games. And the fourth component is motivation. The final match with BATE was almost an official match, the last test before the championship resumed.

– Zabarny, who is absent today, has an injury or has he decided to stay with him before the game with Club Brugge?

– Hope to see you training on Monday. In recent days, Zabarny studied individually in the classroom. He has a badly bruised knee, which has caused him problems. The doctor promised that on Monday Zabarny would study in the general group.

– The Polish media report that Shabanov and Rusin will go to Legia. How can you comment on these rumors and are you satisfied with the defense competition?

– Artem missed a lot through injury and surgery. It was difficult for him to keep up with the game. At this age, you need to play. When the opportunity came up with “Legia”, I promised him that I would let him go to Warsaw. He played well against Legia in training camp, it probably showed there. In no case is it about the fact that he will leave the team: Shabanov will be on loan for three months.

As for the competition in the line of defense, we will vary the composition. We have players. For example, Karavaev was good with BATE and deserved to play today. We made some changes for it to play today. Mikolenko and Kendzera can play both on the wings and in the center of defense. We also have Popov and Sirota. It would probably be a mistake not to let Shabanov go if he wants this transition.

Rusin? Legia is a high quality European level team fighting for the championship. And they expressed their desire to see Rusin in its composition. You need to change the situation, feel this European level. I think it will only benefit. In addition to the players who are on the bench, we have very promising young people who must take a step in adult football.