Exclusive interview: Darijo Srna

10-02-15 10:04:49

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The Pitmen’s captain has summed up two training camps, told about his expectations before a game with Bayern, talked about Shakhtar’s president and fans, and remembered Messi, Schweinsteiger, Mandzukic and Guardiola. You can watch a full version of the video interview here. We bring you the fragments of this meeting.

- Darijo, during you 11-year spell with Shakhtar, training camps have been held in such a format for the first time. What has a trip to Brazil given to the team physically and psychologically?
- It is a pity that only after 11 years we went to Brazil! This is how a big club is developed and built; this is how you create the image. It's a pity that Shakhtar failed to show there its true face, since we were not ready yet physically after a holiday. What happened earlier? Usually we would spend the first two weeks in Donetsk, hold fitness sessions and fly to a training camp already with 60-70 per cent readiness. This time it was different. We travelled from Rio from Kyiv: from -20 to +40. In such heat, of course, it is not easy to train.

- Brazilian and Spanish training camps complement each other and at the same time they are different...
- The most important thing is that no one has got injured! Although, frankly, in Spain, everything could have been better, if the strong wind hadn’t intervened. It is difficult to demonstrate our football in this weather. You know, I have been to many countries. And if it was a pleasure for me, a 32-year-old player, to play in front of 20,000-30,000 crowd, then what can we say about young players?! For them, whose future is at Shakhtar, such trips are very important. They see the real football atmosphere, gain experience, play even friendly matches under pressure. At stadiums in Brazil, 25,000 people watched our games, and in Spain - 60... We were flying from city to city, the organisation was at a very high level. Although I have been to Brazil before, but now I have it seen with different eyes. At the World Cup, I played in Sao Paulo, Recife and Manaus. And at Shakhtar, I have seen five more cities!

- Shakhtar have played nine friendly matches at two training camps. What game has been the best in terms of quality?
- I would like to mention the game with Cruzeiro, the first half with Flamengo and a match with Aalborg. In general, I think that the team are well prepared for a meeting with Bayern.

- How is Mister preparing you ahead of the Bayern match-up?
- We had the opportunity to see their three matches: versus Wolfsburg, Schalke and Stuttgart. Of course, Bayern are favourites in our match-up, although this does not mean that they have already advanced further. I respect Bayern and their coach. But that's football. And if you compare Bayern and Guardiola’s Barcelona, the Spanish club was stronger. Messi alone is worth five Bayern’s players! Of course, I would be more confident in our victory if we played at Donbass Arena! It’s not that I'm looking for an alibi... but we will do everything to surprise and show good results. We want to please all of our fans, residents of Donbas, president of our club and ourselves. Before the match, there is very little time left, but I am calm. I spend a lot of time surfing the Internet; I follow the situation in Donetsk. We hope that this game will benefit Shakhtar and its fans, and the entire Donbas. It is necessary for fighting to end, with peace coming there. And if the solution is found before the match, we will be able to put more energy in this game! Our fans know that we play for them.

FC Shakhtar
Press Office