Marino Pushych, FC Shakhtar January 16, 2025, 12:15 AM

The head coach of Shakhtar Donetsk, Marino Pushych, commented on his team’s victories in the two control matches of the day against CSKA Sofia (1:0) and Ludogorets (4:0).

“The first goal is to get physically fit, as it always is during the off-season. We worked very hard in both matches.

The first game was tough, more of a game between the two 60-meter marks – almost nothing happened in the goal areas of both teams in the first half. I think we could have done a lot better in certain situations, but we were solid defensively, so that’s good. It was a mixed team, some played in different positions and I think they played like adults in the second half. We decided to play one-on-one all over the pitch with four strikers, continued to attack and work hard and scored a deserved goal. So all in all I think this first game was a great and challenging training session where we put in a lot of effort and eventually won. This is very important, because the team again showed maximum character in the last part of the match, playing with only three defenders. I liked what I saw in the final part of the first sparring session.

The second match was definitely different, the level of the opponent is higher, but the way we played it, the maturity with which we played with and without the ball was at a high level. And I really liked what I saw, especially when you play situations like we did, scoring four very good goals and not conceding. Although we had three or four moments where we could have reacted better in terms of pressing. But in general I can be satisfied. And also this game was great for us physically, playing against a good opponent. It was a very good day for us.

It’s the off-season, friendlies, and if I want to try something, if I have any ideas, this is the time to implement them. I’m glad I did it, to see certain moments, to look at footballers in different positions, it was the right moment to try. I think they managed it quite well.

We have a few days to train and recover after these two matches. It was important to play 90 minutes, which most of the players did today. Then we will try to prepare as best as possible for the first match with Brest. We still have a few more days to recover, and then I’ll think about this game again.

Everyone deserves compliments for their attitude, efforts and style of play for most of the time,” the press service of the club quotes Pushych as saying.

On Football.ua A video review of the match Shakhtar — CSKA Sofia is available for viewing.