Shakhtar’s coach Marino Pusic He held a press conference before the Antwerp Champions League match to be played in Hamburg, Germany on November 28.

– After Shakhtar defeated Barcelona in the last round of the Champions League, everyone appreciated the team’s performance, but this was followed by a defeat against Dnepr-1 and a draw with Polissya. What is the reason for these results, because it is a bit worrying ahead of the important match tomorrow?

– Actually, everything is very simple because each game has its own story. This is the first. Each tournament has its own energy and purpose. This is important for me and the team. We have a draw and a defeat in these matches, but if we had completed all our attacks and taken advantage of all the opportunities, we could have easily won in both cases. Sometimes if you don’t do this you may draw or lose. For me it’s all part of the game. What’s more important is how we play. And especially in the last match, we played very well and created many goal opportunities. Sometimes we were a little unlucky to spot one of the chances in time, change the course of the game and win. I’m not happy with the result, but I liked our game and what we were able to show.

– Will we see Artem Bondarenko in the Antwerp match and how ready is he to play?

“He has worked hard to return from injury and has already had a few sessions with us. Slowly but surely he is taking part in group training and getting ready to get some game time. Artem will be in the squad tomorrow and we will see if we need his help during the match. But he is on track to make a full return.” I am pleased.

– Shakhtar failed to score against an opponent for the first time in a year; This also happened in the Polissya match. What do you think is the reason?

– As I said before, we could not make good use of our chance. You know, football is like that sometimes. I’m happy with how we played, the opportunities we created; This is very good for our team. We couldn’t complete our attacks and ended in a draw. But it was a good draw. We didn’t like the final result, but the way we played, the positions we created were very good. Sometimes you have to realize such a chance in order to score even more goals later. Many things were discussed after this match, but for me the important thing is how we played. Each game has its own energy, its own unique feature. We always try to find a way to win, but with our own strategy. It’s bad that you didn’t create anything, but we created a lot. We were at a point forty times where we could have done more than we did. This is important to me too. After the match, I praised my players for their playing style, energy and discipline. Everything was almost perfect except the heads. I agree with you on this.

– After the last match, you said that Efim Konoplya’s injury could be serious. How is the situation now?

– The situation may seem serious when a player leaves the game ten minutes after the start of the match, but initial indications are that the injury is not very serious. He can return to the team in 2-3 weeks. The good thing is that recovery doesn’t take much time. Many more injuries occurred after this fight due to the aggression towards our players. But fortunately, everyone except Konoplya is ready to play in the starting 11 tomorrow.

– Daniil Sikan, who scored a double goal in his first match with Antwerp, came to the press conference with you. Do you expect him to score tomorrow and have you had private discussions with him about how he should perform in this match?

– Of course Daniil is in excellent shape. He is an ambitious football player, wants to score goals, works hard and contributes greatly to the team. To be honest I’m not used to talking about individual players but I always put the team above certain players if such a question arises. Only the team makes the player better; The opposite is not true.

Because as a team we improve each other and in this case as a team we help Danil become better and give him the opportunity to score goals. He is improving rapidly, scoring a lot of goals, working very hard with the team. Of course, like every young player, he needs to improve. He and the other players have big goals and are willing to prove themselves; As a coach, I am very happy with this.

– As someone who has worked as Shakhtar’s coach for several weeks, what kind of difficulties do you face in daily life when working with a team in war conditions and considering that many players also affect their family members? Does it affect you psychologically?

– In my opinion, if your question is about working under the conditions that currently exist in Ukraine, then as a coach you perform not only the task of football mentor, but also many other tasks. One of these is to help your players feel good about themselves and have enough self-confidence to explore their talents and play well. It is clear that the situation is completely different from everything that each of us is used to seeing in our countries and requires adaptation, social skills and the desire to work hard every day for the development of the team.

The club staff helps me a lot, for which I am grateful. As I said last time, I see a good organization, people are trying to do their best under these conditions, which is not that easy. As you know, my team came here for about 10 hours yesterday. Such a program requires a lot of effort and especially such travel. We also have the mental strength to take on the challenge and do our best. So this is not a very common situation, but it is what happens. Everyone in the club, including me as a coach, is trying to make every effort to find the best way out of the situation and compete with other teams.

– Do you think players perform better because they represent their country and nation?

– Of course, this is part of the motivation and an additional impetus, when you play for your country, to energize the people there, to play in a way that makes them proud of you. However, his main motivation is to perform professionally for his teammates and the club. You are also representing your country in Europe and now it is very important that people are proud of Shakhtar and that we stay in European competitions longer.

– Question about your friend Mark van Bommel: Have you contacted him?

– No, we’ll talk tomorrow.

– What do you think of his football?

“With Mark, Antwerp achieved a remarkable result, becoming last year’s champion and winning trophies. Doing this is not easy, but it is a great achievement. I respect him, his team and the Antwerp club. They are strong competitors. I know the start of this season hasn’t gone well for them, but sometimes that can just result in bad luck. I think he is a very good coach and he has already shown that. It’s not easy to beat your team.