The Russian national football team will hold its first training camp in 2023. The team’s coach, Valery Karpin, immediately called up 49 players and divided them into two groups: one will play matches with the Egyptian Olympic team, and the other will fly to the match against Qatar.
After the open training, which took place on September 8, the Russian coach spoke to journalists, revealed the details of the preparation of the base for the match against the host country of the 2022 World Cup, analyzed the draw with the Egyptians (1 : 1) and talked about the attitude of the national team players towards patriotism.
—How do you assess the level of the team in this concentration?
“We did everything we had to do, the intensity and the mood were good. We finally had our first full training session in two years. I had never done a workout like this before.
— Golovin can safely be considered one of the stars and leaders of the team. What condition is he in now? What are your impressions of his playing? How quickly did he adapt?
—If you go down from a better level, you always adapt quickly. It’s hard to adapt when you need to change to improve and increase intensity. Everyone’s impressions, including him, are most pleasant, he doesn’t need to adapt.
Mikhail Shapaev / RFU
— You have a rich career as a coach. Is Golovin the best player you have coached on any team?
“I probably won’t say it right away.” Probably not. First of all, everyone has different positions. What does coolest player mean? There is a central defender, a midfielder and a forward. I had Alex in Spartak, he was probably in a higher class.
“This is a childhood dream, no matter who you play with.” Golovin – about returning to the national team, Qatar and Monaco
— What can you say about the restoration of Sergei Pinyaev? Will he return to Egypt or Qatar? Which group is it suitable for?
—The recovery is going well, I think we will see it on the field tomorrow (September 9), but we have to think about which group. Let’s look at the players, the status of those who returned from Egypt and those who are preparing to fly to Qatar.
— You said you still don’t know everyone by name. But if you ask the guys you trained yesterday who you are and where you played, will they all give you at least the minimum information?
– How should I know? No idea. I still don’t know their names either. It’s not important. The main thing is to know who is who and how they played.
Mikhail Shapaev / RFU
—How would you evaluate the level of reserves?
— I wouldn’t give an assessment based specifically on yesterday’s game. Yes, I have my own vision, but I wouldn’t give a rating after two days of training. Some people absorb information faster, others more slowly, some can manifest themselves immediately, others after 2 or 3 training sessions. Plus the conditions the players found themselves in, from the flight to the weather. Some people are affected by the heat, others do not feel it. I wouldn’t draw deep conclusions based on a single game. There are players who showed a more respectable level yesterday, others did not. This is normal.
We came to Egypt for a walk. The Russian team barely walked during half of the game
— Is there someone very talented who you can invite to the next first team training camp?
—If we talk about yesterday’s game, then yes, there were players who surprised and pleased. If they play consistently, then yes, maybe in October they can end up in the first team. I won’t say who, I don’t mean, I don’t want to encourage or belittle anyone with this.
—Why did you decide to have Onopko coach the game against Egypt on September 11?
— Because Viktor Savelyevich has been present at every theoretical and training session in Rostov for a year and a half, we are in daily communication with him. He knows and understands everything. It will be easier for him than for Nikiforov.
Mikhail Shapaev / RFU
— Do you plan to contact Viktor Savelyevich during the match? How will communication take place?
— I think it’s unlikely during the match, since I don’t see any point in adjusting anything or interfering. Maybe during the break.
—Can we say that the issue of choosing the lineup is closed? And now, despite the fact that the status of the matches is friendly, the main task is still the result?
– I did not say that. We talk about whether we need and want to win. I said yes, any footballer and any athlete wants to win even in training. Setting the goal of winning a match against Qatar is ridiculous. She is always standing. It is necessary to show the fans and ourselves that the team exists and works.
— Litvinov is a versatile footballer and plays two positions for Spartak. How do you mainly see him: for you, is he a central defender or a defensive midfielder?
– I would like to use him in the support zone, but because, let’s say, we don’t have many central defenders, he will play in this position.
Mikhail Shapaev / RFU
– What does this have to do with it? Recently, too many defenders from Latin America have come to the RPL, the level of confidence in young people has decreased, maybe this is the problem?
— Well, before we were not from Latin America. We always had many of them. You see, the central defender position is one of the most important and this is where stability is needed. And with young players, of course, stability is a utopia. They still have to make their mistakes. This can be seen, for example, in Rostov. Therefore, naturally, not everyone can afford to trust young players, especially central defenders. If there is also the possibility of bringing a foreigner, even if he is elderly, he will prefer this option.
—You feel that young people are a completely different generation. The team you trained in Egypt is made up of people who were born in this century. Do you think that for these guys the issue of the prestige of playing for the national team and patriotism is serious?
– For some to a greater extent, for others to a lesser extent, but in principle yes. Like in our generation. Not all of us shout “For the Homeland! By Stalin!” We also had some to a greater extent, others to a lesser extent, like now.
— Have you encountered any difficulties, other than the fact that you don’t know everyone by name, when communicating with young people during the time you were in communication? Do you understand what they think and say?
– I understand, of course. I understand, because half of my team in Rostov is like that.
— Taking into account the level of skill of this team that played in Egypt, what is the main indicator for you as a coach?
– Now we will talk about this for three hours. Bipedality may be, but if there is no head, you can at least have three legs. What is the point?
—How many are bipeds in this team that trained in Egypt: who has a left and a right?
– Nobody. And in the first team there are no such people.
-What does this mean?
– It says nothing. About the fact that they are those footballers, that’s all. Messi only uses his left hand. And? Or does Messi have two legs? And what, bad? This is not the most important thing. Bipedality is not the most important thing. It is not necessary to have two legs to be the best in the world.
fake images
— Do you think that the lack of demand for our footballers in Europe has to do with the money in Russian football? That is, they pay here what they would not pay in Europe.
– Yes, sure.
—So it’s not a question of skill level?
– Not only. Together. Not just skill. I have already said it a million times: if they paid me in Russia, in my time, I mean, twice as much as in Spain, I would hardly have left.
“Don’t you judge those who don’t leave now?”
– No, in principle I don’t blame anyone. Each one does what he believes is necessary.
—Have you chosen a captain for the match against Qatar?
— Honestly, I didn’t even think about who would be the captain in the match against Qatar.
