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Igor Cherevchenko: Derby? Just a nice word

On Sunday Lokomotiv will open the home season with its Moscow derby with Dynamo. In the first issue of Our Loko pre-match edition we focus on what the team was busy with in the off-season, introduce our newcomers and tell about the rival we are going to face.

The man of the issue is our head coach Igor Cherevchenko. In an extensive interview he tells us about his principles in life and in football: to be stiff, to hit back, not to lose, not to raise voice, to show respect and support.

The full interview will come out in the printed edition of Our Loko, but parts of it are available for you right now.

- Yours is a generation of some tough men. Drozdov, Arifullin, Loskov, Cherevchenko… When these people are named, it brings to mind certain associations.

- Tough? No, I would not say so. Hardboiled players, with the constant focus on the game - but a merriest company afterwards, gregarious and funny. And full of humour were we, too!

- But, wait… I remember Yegor Titov telling once how he tried to strike up acquaintance with Zaza Dzhanashia without success - Zaza whispering back to him they were not allowed to talk to Spartak players.

- I tell you what: we fought in every game - all the more against Spartak. Sometimes I had to play harsh. I used to be rude. But we shook hands after the game and parted respectfully. I played personally against many of my own friends and buddies. All those who wished to get to know me better, had that possibility.

- At the meeting with fans in July you said some simple and yet very genuine words: “Guys, if we stay together, we can move mountains”. You, of all people, should know that unity is above excellence!

- The match with Greek AEK is the most memorable example. Our fans were there for us all the way, and we pressured the rival till the end. The referees disallowed not one but two of our goals, but we continued undaunted and in the extra time got the better of it, virtually sending the ball home.

And about the Cup… I could say it was our fans’ merit.

- How much did you drink from the bowl?

- Half a gulp. I am just not into champagne.

- Do you keep your medals in a box or in plain sight?

- Have them stashed somewhere at home. I mean to take them out. I have moved from one place to another a lot – not a good time for putting things on display. I have shirts enough for a good collection, also waiting to be sorted and arranged somehow.

***

- Lokomotiv have had a good start, getting six points out of six possible!

- It would be good to earn as many points as possible now - that would spare us from kicking ourselves in spring grieving over the wasted points. The team have demonstrated group work. The guys are like brothers, playing for each other. After the match in Makhachkala I was asked who I could single out, but I say it again, we performed successfully as a team. At the start, three or four rounds into the tournament, the teams are more or less equal and the same level. It is too soon for leaders to emerge. The squads are yet to gel. And it is too early to judge.

- It has been reported now and again how well you get along with the players. Many years on the coaching staff did not go by in vain. The guys recall your speech during the break of the Cup finals. They say those were the exact words they needed to turn everything around.

- I do not remember in detail what I said then.

- Maybe, it was the emotions behind the words!

- I am a naturally calm person. I do not shout. We talked football – it was a no-nonsense talk. But after the finals we had ample time to talk life.

- OK, if the talk centred on the game, what changed in the second half?

- We played more through the wings. Made a few useful substitutions. The guys themselves turned the tables. The trophy is theirs. I am glad for them.

- You have held more than just a few team meetings recently. Has the topic of this year’s objectives been brought up?

- We live from game to game, maybe month to month. What’s the point of looking too far in the future?

- When you were appointed a coach, the team’s routine was diversified. How do you know the right load?

- A few hours before a training session coaches discuss its aim. At that point we define the load. You know, they say, undertraining is better than overtraining. We hope to strike the golden medium. By the way, there is new equipment at our Bakovka base. It is easy to manage - all players’ performance data are right in front of you.

- But this time the off-season was too short.

- A month would have been just the right time. But we were given less because a Super Cup match against Zenit was scheduled for July 12. We were one week short. I believe Zenit were in the same position.

- What was your own record time away from home when you were still an active player?

- Twenty-six days. I was with Lokomotiv in France, up in the mountains. Honestly, I can cope with the training camp for 12 days, but more becomes a nuisance. Ten is optimum. There are longer spells, however. I heard that FC Uralan Elista were once away for two months. Now that’s a record! They even had their wages brought to them in cash to where they were based.

***

- The interim achievement is obvious: the team knows what kind of football it plays.

- The team has always known it! Sometimes we are simply not up to the mark. And we get fine opponents, too - they check us, they choke us, they cut off the angles… Russian football has never been different. I remember, while in the Champions League, we could not help but wonder - the Euro tournaments were actually easier than our domestic competition. And it’s not an illusion. In Europe, they play and let you play as well. But here teams sometimes don’t play and don’t let you play, either. The Russian championship is tough - class alone is not enough.

- Soon we will test ourselves in the Europa League…

- And it offers excellent motivation for the fans to attend matches. European tournaments mean the highest step - the top level. The drawing? I anticipate it. The stronger the rival, the more interesting it gets. England, Germany, Italy… Let it be the leading football nations. We want to play against all of them.

- So you do not shun football giants, do you?

- Why would we? It is possible to defeat anyone and lose to everyone. I have been there. We used to say that they are made of the same hands and legs as we are... Endeavour allowed us to beat top teams in the Champions League. It was back then I developed my vision of the group-work’s primary importance. Group effort means one manner of play, playing each man for himself – quite another.

***

- On Sunday Koba and Voyna are coming to Cherkizovo - isn’t that what you nickname them?

- I want to make it clear, it was usual to address people by their nicknames in our time. Years have not changed things. But we stick to it in our close circle only. Andrey Kobelev is a great person. He demonstrated thrilling play, followed by a successful coaching career. I equally respect Alexander Smirnov, and our meetings are always hearty.

- Kobelev and Smirnov were midfielders. Pashinin and you, both on Loko coaching staff, used to play in defence. How do you think this fact may influence your coaching philosophy?

- It doesn’t matter, really. If coaches are former defenders, they know little of the offensive strategies - is that what you mean? I can rephrase it: as former defenders, we know how to play against strikers, and are well familiar with all of their tricks.

Sometimes people ask questions about the defensive football, and why you chose to play that. But a lot depends on the adversary!

You know, some coaches have a line-based approach, and during practices they divide their teams accordingly. And even set tasks for their team guided by that principle. I am not in favour of this style. We do all instructions and analysis together as a team.

- Are you excited about the derby?

- People like the word ‘derby’. They relish it, saying such things as ‘oh, yeah, a derby is a derby’. For me Zenit, Krasnodar, Kuban and the rest are all derbies. So I am afraid I cannot support such conversation. We are to meet a very serious rival - that’s what Dynamo are.

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