Mircea Lucescu: Shakhtar just had to come to Brazil

10-01-15 19:21:40

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During a tour of the South American continent, the Pitmen’s head coach talked to reporters.

- I flew to Brazil with great pleasure. It is important to conduct this tour, because, as you know, half of the players from Shakhtar are Brazilians. They are all talented players who have come to Ukraine at the age of 18-19, and now many of them play for the Brazil national team. Now the boys have the opportunity to play for the Brazilian public. Shakhtar just had to come to this country and to demonstrate the talent of our performers. It is very good for their future and the future of our club. We will play five matches here. And it will be the first time! It is the first time when we are preparing for the second half of the season and the match of the Champions League against Bayern this way. The games, which are scheduled, will become a good base before the UEFA Champions League.

- I know that you treat Brazilian players very well and love Brazilian football and even learned the language. What is the cause of all this?
- Yes, I love Brazilian players. And so it was easier to learn Portuguese. I want to say that in Brazil, there is a lot of good quality football. This is aesthetic football of very high quality. When I became the coach of Shakhtar, we immediately began to discuss the possibility of leaning towards Brazilian football. Matuzalem was the first performer. A good player. He exceled in Ukraine, and he has a good future. The fact is that the players, who have already achieved something, are not eager to come to Eastern Europe. Therefore, many of those who move here are 18-19, there is a lot to learn. And for me the greatest happiness is to train them, bring to a new level. Some guys hold a significant number of matches in Ukraine and show good results. I think because of this, they learn a lot, and I like it.

- What do you know about the teams that you will face and how are you preparing for them?
- Despite the fact that we will play friendlies, training for them is very important. Because these are very good clubs. Moreover, there are a lot of Brazilians in our team. Of course, we follow the clubs in this country. So we know many of them. I've always loved Brazilian football, since the 1970s, when I was captain of the Romania national team. And as a player I faced Brazilian teams many times. It was possible to hold a preparatory tour in different countries, but I wanted Shakhtar to play with players of the same level as we are. Because we have a lot of Brazilian performers.

- How was your yesterday’s meeting with Zico? How did you meet him?
- I have known him for a long time. He was the favourite player of the Italian fans. I met  Zico when he was in charge of CSKA. Yesterday there was a very good meeting.

- And what about Douglas Costa and Bernard? Where are they now?
- Bernard is a great talent, a good player, but this is not enough. He lacks a bit of professional education, and he apparently does not feel confidence. This is the fourth time when he's late. This is completely wrong. It’s not enough to have talent, it is important to arrive on time and do what you're told. I developed many players at Shakhtar, who now play for the Brazil national team. For me it is important to bring a player to the level, which would allow him to be called up by the national team. I myself played for the Romania national team. It is imperative to reach this level, since joining the club at 18-19, football still cannot cope with all tasks. The same applies to Douglas Costa.

FC Shakhtar
Press Office