National Team Coach Vincenzo Montella answered the questions asked to him about the national team before the World Cup, exclusively for A Spor.
Here are the highlights from Montella’s statements…
“Our goal is to advance step by step in the World Cup and get out of the group in the first place. It is normal to have pressure. Because you represent a nation as the national team coach. What we need to do is to give our best by managing our emotions well.”
“THESE ARE NOT EXCUSES”
“The European Championship and the World Cup are different from each other. In the European Championship, the distances are shorter and closer. Since we are participating in the World Cup through the play-offs, the distances are longer. Our training fields are 40 minutes away. The place in Arizona, where we will stay and camp, is very good. We examined the fields and conditions there. We will play the first match in Vancouver, the weather will be milder compared to Arizona. These are not excuses. If you are going to the World Cup, you have to overcome the little things.”
“WE SHOULD ACT CONSCIOUSLY”
“I would like to tell you about the opponents a little bit. Australia is in the World Cup for the 7th time, they are used to it. They are a very compact and disciplined team. Paraguay is such a team that they are used to playing against big national teams. They played against teams like Brazil and Argentina. It is always difficult to play against such a national team. The USA has a very good team. It has many players playing in Europe and is the home team. We want to dream, but first we need to be realistic and act consciously in order to give the best performance…”
“WE MUST MAKE A SACRIFICE”
“We have an unpredictable team. We will try to achieve the maximum no matter what. We must always aim for the best. We must act in unity, sometimes we must defend together, sometimes we must attack. We are fully concentrated on the first match, the Australia match. It is similar to the matches we have played in the past. It will be similar to the Kosovo match. We must play without rushing. We must play mentally together, with sacrifice. It is up to me to prepare our football players for the match, with data, videos and analysis.”
“WE HAVE SPECIAL STRATEGIES”
“In modern football, it is necessary to first understand the opponents, what they are doing, what you do to gain an advantage against them. You must determine these and choose a strategy. While making all these preparations, when we focus on Australia, we will choose strategies according to the conditions and characteristics of our football players. We have game methods, but we will also have special strategies.”
ABOUT THE SQUAD OF OUR NATIONAL TEAM…
“Perhaps we could have added a few more deserving players to the squad… While making the evaluation, we looked at the training dates of some of the players. When we considered the training, some of them came on the 22nd and some on the 28th. Today we will be a full squad. We planned the training accordingly. When we come to the end, the squad will be 23 people. Even when you train 10 to 10, some players are left out. That’s why they keep the number small in such tournaments, to avoid unrest in the squad. Before leaving, they made all the options available.” We will evaluate it. It is necessary to be able to play in different positions and to reward the players who represent the team the best, both on and off the field. In such tournaments, players who play in many different positions have an advantage. On the day when we have to announce the squad, we will upset a few players. It will be a difficult decision, a difficult day. When we look at other national teams, we have players worth 80-100 million Euros. They don’t. It’s part of our job.”
“REGENERATION PROCESS IS VERY IMPORTANT”
“Our football players played a lot of matches in the season, but they came here very motivated. The World Cup is every football player’s dream. Our strategy is to stay in Riva as long as we can. Our football players can also go to their families in the evenings and spend time. Giving such mental breaks has many benefits. We do the training and everyone spends time with their families in the evenings. It is very important to be able to take such a break before such a big tournament. Physical and mental regeneration is very important. We made such a decision together with my football players. Rather than staying in Riva We are happy, we have all the opportunities…”
ABOUT KEREM AKTÜRKOĞLU’S LATEST SITUATION…
“Kerem Aktürkoğlu is a very, very important football player. Let me explain his importance for us; he is a football player who puts pressure on the team very effectively and can also score goals. It is very important for us. I cannot imagine spending the World Cup without Kerem! We had great fear that day. Thank God, he is not in a serious condition. Kerem even started running. I told him not to rush without taking risks. It is more important for us that he is in the World Cup. We are making his comeback step by step, without rushing. I will not take risks in the match on the 1st of the month. “Maybe I will give him time for the match on the 6th of the month. Kerem is a very important part of our team. We will manage the process without taking risks.”
