Sport Arena and PFL traditionally determine the hero of the tour in the Second League. This time it is Anton Evdokimov, the author of three effective actions in the Chaika-YUKSA match, who received this victory at a high price – injury
Chaika in the reporting round was one of the few teams that did not lose points in the new championship, and one of only two that did not concede. Nevertheless, the debutant of the YUKSA competition managed to beat the Borshchagovites on their field, and the central midfielder Evdokimov played the leading role – he scored twice and assisted the newcomer Gabriel. Imagine, he is involved in all the goals of his team in Kalinovka!
The hero of the third round in the Second League, Anton Evdokimov, shared with Sport Arena his impressions of the victory over Chaika (3:1 on its field), and also spoke about the bright debut of the Brazilians for YUKSA, the first legionnaires who played this season.
— I think it is very important for every player to be recognized as the best player on the tour, — said the football player in an interview with Sport Arena. – Everyone strives to win in every match, I am no exception. I will try to continue to give all the best in every game at 100 percent in order to receive the nomination of the best player in the future.
– In the Cup, you flew out of Zvyagel without a chance. What useful things did you take away from the match? Do you understand what else to strive for?
– The only useful thing to take away from the game is that we can fully concentrate on the Second League championship. And that’s it. I wanted to go further, get on the Premier League team to fight them. And how it would have been – is unknown. And so very sad because of the fact that flew.
– How much did the strengthening by the Brazilians help you? Are they individually strong players?
– From the Brazilians, as they say, football magic comes. For our team it will be some kind of zest. They are very skilled players. Of course, it is difficult for them, because now they are undergoing a period of adaptation: a new country, especially since there is a war going on in Ukraine. The most important thing for them now is to concentrate on football. As players they are strong. I think they will help us a lot both in terms of rotation and in terms of competition. I think this is a big plus for our team.
– Who helps the Brazilians to adapt to the new team?
– We have several people in our team who communicate in Spanish, Portuguese, there is an interpreter. Because, I think, they will not have problems with adaptation in the team. We received them well, they are also great guys, so, in my opinion, everything will be fine.
– Who suggested you join the newcomers of the Second League? How long did you think about the offer?
– Nikolai Vladimirovich called me directly (Tsymbal – approx. Sport Arena), Main coach. I invited him to my place, I arrived, looked at the conditions of the club and immediately decided to stay.
– How different is the level of the Second League from the First?
– At the moment, it seems to me that before the full-scale war, the level of the Second League was higher than now. Now many young players are playing, many “second” teams. That is, the club plays, for example, in the First League, and these are their backups, if I may say so, and they play in the Second League. These are young people who have not yet played in either the First or Second League, so the level is different.
– Do you see any prospects for your club to make itself known throughout Ukraine? To what extent have YUKSA created the conditions for progress?
– The club has created all the conditions for further development. And every day these conditions are improving. The club has a very warm and friendly atmosphere, everyone works for the benefit of the club. The president does a lot (Sergey Lesnik – approx. Sport Arena). He is like the heart of the club. A very powerful energy emanates from him, he charges us for every match. Apparently, he is very worried.
Nobody shouts about some big tasks for the season, but I think that every normal football player who is a professional sets himself the goal of winning every match. We are no exception, we will play to win in every match. And what goals we achieve will be seen at the end of the championship.
– With what expectations did you approach the match against Chaika, who had never conceded a goal before? What did the coaching staff focus on?
– The coaching staff analyzed this team very well, prepared us tactically. We analyzed the weaknesses of the opponent. I think we fulfilled the game plan 100 percent, that’s why we managed to defeat this team. I think that we dominated throughout the match, confidently defeated them.
– Already in the eighth minute after your pass, Gabriel opened the scoring. Did you welcome your new partner with a great debut?
– Of course, the whole team congratulated and supported him. This is his first goal in our team, besides in his debut match. For every footballer, this is a dream, not a debut. I think he will continue to score goals, provide assists, and will show himself very well in our team.
– Almost immediately, the opponent equalized. What happened in this episode?
I think it’s a loss of concentration. Somewhere they didn’t finish the moment, the opponent jumped ahead of the curve and scored a goal. This, in my opinion, is the mistake of the whole team. It is necessary to score a goal and then act with concentration, so as not to concede directly into your own net.
– However, even before the break, thanks to your goal, YUKSA took the lead again. You played first on the rebound and sent the ball into the net. Helped scoring flair?
– Well, if I score the fifth goal in ten years, and this can be called scoring instinct, then maybe scoring instinct. But he just ran to finish. The coaching staff emphasizes that our attackers run when we shoot on goal. And then I decided to run, luck was on my side – I managed to score.
– Can a sending off from an opponent at the start of the second half be considered a key episode in the match?
– I don’t think it was a key episode, because we dominated and started the second half confidently in the first half. I think even if there hadn’t been a penalty, we would have put the squeeze on the opponent without too much trouble.
– In the championship, the team scored 7 points out of 9 possible. Are you satisfied with the debut of FC YUKSA at the professional level?
– I can’t say that I am completely satisfied, because we didn’t take the maximum possible number of points in three matches (at the start of the championship, YUKSA tied 0:0 on the Lokomotiv field, – approx. Sport Arena). If there were 9 points, I would be 100 percent satisfied. And it turns out that somewhere around 80 percent.
– The victory over Chaika once again showed the ambitions of the team. In your opinion, can YUKSA fight for the top 3 already in the debut season?
“I think we can fight. We will continue to play connections between the lines, between the players. I think that we have a very good team, although it consists mainly of young people, the team is good. Therefore, we will fight, and then we will see how it will turn out.
BLITZ
- Born in Gorlovka
- Pupil of Metallurg School (Donetsk)
- First coach – Sergey Anatolyevich Shcherban
- In Europe I follow PSG
- Favorite football player – Joshua Kimmich
- My dream is to debut in the Premier League.
Yaroslav Krokha
Source: Sportarena
I’m Scott Moore, a professional writer and journalist based in the US. I’ve been writing for various publications for over 8 years now, and have been working as an author at athletistic for the past five years. My work has been featured by some of the leading sports websites and magazines across Europe.
