Today, September 11, at 7:00 p.m., the Russian team will play the second friendly match with the Egyptian Olympic team. The coach of the Russians in this match will be Viktor Onopko. Before the start of the meeting, the specialist spoke with the Soviet sports correspondent. In an exclusive interview, he talked about the expectations for him in his debut as the national team coach, shared his emotions at participating in the Ilya Tsymbalar Memorial Match, and revealed the details of Zakharyan’s adaptation in Spain. .
— Lately you have been like a traveling frog: you participated in the Tsymbalar memorial game, recently you were in Murmansk, now in Egypt. How are you doing these days?
– Stressful, but interesting. Of course, you get very tired. But I feel great pleasure in what is happening. The trip to Murmansk was very exciting. The Ilya memory match was great, I’m very glad I participated.
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—Are you going to participate in those legends matches?
– I like it. But we’ll see how much my health and my time allow. And I will continue participating if possible. It worked in that game. The desire is always there.
Alejandro Liubarski / RFU
— Do you remember any interesting stories related to Tsymbalar?
– There were many interesting stories with him, I don’t want to highlight any in particular, this is a topic for a separate interview. We played a lot together in Spartak and in the national team. He was always a positive person, smiling, joking. There was never anything negative from him. I know his family well. We often had dinner and lunch together. He was a great footballer, but above all a man with a capital letter. He, of course, will remain forever in our hearts, we will remember him, he is always with us.
— What are your emotions and expectations after your debut as coach of the Russian team?
– We must continue to do what Valery Georgievich said. We have a direction that we follow, we follow the same tactical scheme, the same requirements for footballers. We work on all of this in these training camps. I treat it like work. Today we will act according to the same plan that we described above with Georgievich, there is no emotion at all.
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— Will you keep in touch with Valery Georgievich during the match?
– It is unlikely that we will be in contact throughout the match. But if possible, we will find a connection with Valery Georgievich through assistants. Maybe it will work during the break.
Mikhail Shapaev / RFU
What are your impressions of the young players? Do you understand them, what are they talking about, what do they think?
– Of course I understand them, we speak the same language (laughs). Everything’s fine. There is no doubt about his professionalism, even at such a young age. Their job is to meet the requirements and grow as footballers. There are guys who played in the first team. I don’t divide them into several teams. We have a team.
—So the forty-nine players form a single team?
– Yeah.
– Alexander Golovin said that he has not yet communicated with the young people at all. Still, is there a division between the base and the team that plays for Egypt?
— We live in different buildings, because we don’t all fit in one. We also have lunch at different times, because we don’t fit in either. That is, it is not always possible for everyone to communicate with each other. But there is someone there to talk to. Many footballers came with whom you can communicate. Golovin has guys he played with in CSKA and before in the national team. So he has enough communication.
Mikhail Shapaev / RFU
— We remember Golovin. He finally returned to the national team after a long absence. How happy were you to see him? How was the team encouraged with his arrival?
– We are always happy to see a footballer we have called and who wants to come. Calling up to the national team is a great event for any player, even if he still has to fight for a place in the squad. There is competition. Golovin plays in France, we haven’t seen him for a long time. That’s why it was nice to see him in the national team and in training, especially since we will have a game in Qatar soon.
– Are you in contact with Zakharyan now?
– Well, yes, we talked to Arsen.
Mikhail Shapaev / RFU
– Did he tell you how he is adjusting?
— Well, adaptation is difficult, because it is not easy for any footballer who comes abroad. First of all, it is a different language. Secondly, at first you have to get used to the new requirements. All this takes time. No one thought it would be easy for him there, especially at first. Besides, it was alone. He is a young footballer, I think he will be able to face it and adapt. The most important thing is to learn the language, at least at the beginning, in order to understand it simply.
