Valeriy Rudakov: Kremen weren’t quite ready for our counterattacks

08-04-15 09:55:28

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Mentor of Shakhtar-3 speaks about the victory over the team of Serhiy Svystun, Kyryl Kovalets’ performance and the upcoming meeting with Real Farma.

- Valeriy, your team quite successfully started the spring part of the league season: the second victory in a row, and this time against one of the leaders - Kremen. What’s the reason behind such successful results?
- I think that the painstaking work that we carried out during the winter period manifests itself. Having had enough time for preparation, we did a great job both functionally and tactically. It is also important to note our coherent teamwork. In fact, that is exactly what served as the key to our current success.

- In the match against Kremen, when the hosts equalized towards the end of the game, did you continue to believe that you still could win this encounter?
- Frankly, I did. Hope for a positive outcome is always there, as we had such wonderful counterattacking chances. Of course, the draw is also a good result, especially against this kind of  opponents, we did not want to lose any points though. That's why we went to Kremenchuh to claim the win. Before the game we clearly defined at the expense of that we can beat our rivals: that’s counter-attacking moves and a quick transition from defence to attack. I think our opponents were not quite ready for it.

- You said that the team performed a considerable amount of work during the preparatory period, but at the same time the youngsters in your team increasingly more often attract your attention ...
- Of course, those guys who in nearly every game take to the pitch right from the off (there are five or six players), they show some huge progress. It happens despite the fact that we perform squad rotation every six months. The lads significantly improve their performance, gain self-confidence and have greater stability. In a word, they get the football wisdom. Earlier it was like this: one game is good, two bad ones.  Now they showcase some consistent performance.

- By the way, how do you find the performance by Kyrylo Kovalets, who notched another goal in the second consecutive game?
- Kyrylo is just the perfect example of the stability and self-confidence. He already has a permanent place in the starting line-up of our team, so he already proves himself as the leader of the team. I am, as a coach, very delighted at the fact.

- Can we say that the Pitmen have benefited from signing the new players who have joined the club over the last few days?
- Basically, yes. We, as you might know, had some defensive issues. At the moment, the pair of central defenders Viksach - Aksyonov looks more or less confident so far. But, perhaps, you can understand it: there are still nine more rounds in the championship ... Two good games is nice, but we should keep this level of consistency in the future to make sure that we secure five or six such games in a row. That’s our objective.

- Especially considering that your next game will be against Real Farma – also tough opponents ...
- Let's see ... We, by the way, recently played a friendly match against the Pharmacists in Odesa, when we had a period of preparation for the league season. It is interesting that at the end of last year, we also completed the first part of the season against Real Farma. I can say that the Odesa side are a very good and organised team. On our part, in the upcoming meeting we will try to play our own game and get points. Also, we should not forget that Real Farma recently drew with one of the league leaders - the capital’s Brovar. We will try to counteract them with our own game.

Ukrainskiy Futbol
07/04/2015