Mladen Bartulovich: "We had a serious talk after the last match"

Today, as part of the preparation for the match against "Karpaty," the team played a scrimmage, with two halves of 25 minutes each. It is worth noting that 10 players from the U19 team took part in the game. In the end, the "green" team won with a score of 3:0, with goals scored by Antyuk, Herelis, and Bahrii.

The head coach of "Metalist 1925," Mladen Bartulovich - talks about the break during the national team matches, the scrimmage, the squad situation, the upcoming match against "Karpaty," and the goals for the final matches of the year:

— Mladen, today the break during the national team matches was filled with a scrimmage. How informative was it for you?

— Yes, we are working. We have many young players, so we decided to mix the squads and have a friendly match. It is important for us to give the guys a workload and support their form. We have four very important matches ahead, and we are already preparing for the game against "Karpaty." Currently, we are missing four players who are with the national teams, and we also have several injured players. We hope to be fully prepared for the game against "Karpaty."

— You mentioned a large number of injured players. Is today's participation of many young footballers in the scrimmage related to the absence of some key players?

— As I mentioned before, some players are with the national teams, and there are injuries, so we are actively working with the youth at the moment. This is a great opportunity for them to train with us and show what they can do.

— Speaking more specifically, do you have any information about the recovery time for any of the injured players?

— There are no exact timelines yet. The recovery process is ongoing, and we hope that everything will go as quickly as possible.

— There is currently a small series of games without victories in the championship. How much pressure is this putting on the team? Have you managed to distract the players from the results a bit to prepare for the final part of the year in a positive mood?

— Yes, we had a serious conversation after the last match. We have very important games coming up before the winter break. Everyone is highly motivated and continues to work because we have no other option.

— Ahead is the match against "Karpaty," their coach Vladyslav Lupashko is familiar to you, as well as Bohdan Shust, who is also in the coaching staff of the future opponent. Will this be a factor that will help or hinder?

— Yes, we all know each other well, so there are no secrets. I think it will be a very interesting match. Lviv always has a great atmosphere, fans come to support the team, so we will be happy to play at the "Ukraine" stadium.