“Many were lazy, did not work on themselves” – coach Kozlov about the hockey players of “Kunlun”

hockey coach Vyacheslav Kozlov in an interview with shared his impressions of working in Chinese “Kunlun” .

Vyacheslav Kozlov, Igor Ulanov and Nikolai Mishin were part of Alexei Kovalev’s HQ in the 2020/21 season. Under his leadership, the Chinese team took the last place in the KHL Eastern Conference. Kozlov’s deal with the Chinese club expired on April 30, 2021 and was not renewed.

– You spent a season in the technical staff of Kunlun – is it an exotic or useful experience?

– This proposal usually came at the last moment. That year, I was not going to work at all, I was preparing to fly to my family. And so he turned down several clubs. But due to covid restrictions he stayed in Russia. And at this time, Kunlun also moved to Mytishchi due to the pandemic. I received a call from his head coach Alexei Kovalev, who offered me a job. At that time, I already understood that I would definitely not fly from Russia. Decided why not?

– Does the Chinese club have a future in the KHL?

– As far as I know, they have already announced the composition. The coach will be a Canadian who coaches the Italian national team.

— What is the mentality of the Chinese players? Are they very different from Russians?

– What kind of Chinese are they? In the same place, all the players at the time were predominantly North American. Yes, with Chinese roots, but with a mentality from Canada and the United States. I would say that they lacked a “whip”. In principle, all the guys knew how to play, but many were lazy, did not work on themselves. For them, it was easy money. They play for their own pleasure, live in Moscow, get high. Nobody really wants to make the playoffs, there’s no competition in the roster, Kozlov said.