“How did it happen that you are no longer the Legia coach?” – asked the Russian journalist Sergei Astahov at the outset. – When we played in Moscow in September, you said to me “see you in Warsaw”. Do you remember what I told you then? That I do not know if I will still be the Legia coach in December – he laughed Czesław Michniewicz.
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Legend of the Legion unequivocally: He is guilty of chaos. “This is not a catastrophe. It is a scandal”
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– We played well in European cups, but in first league there was a big problem. We did not have enough players, there was not enough time for the training process, because after Thursdays in Europa League We played matches in the league on Sunday. In addition, there were injuries, which also affected the quality of the squad. When it seemed that things were getting better – we won two games. This later came defeat 0: 3 by Napoli, with which we were tied 0-0 until the 75th minute. My last match in Legia took place three days later – recalls Michniewicz.
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– Did I realize that I might be fired? I thought about it. After all, I’ve worked in 11 clubs, I can sense these things. I took only 16 players to the away game against Piast (1: 4). We played well, created many opportunities, but it was the opponent who used all four of his situations. On Monday I met with the president who said about his decision to change the coach to give the team a new impetus – reveals Michniewicz.
Michniewicz settles accounts with Legia
And in response to the next question, he adds that he left Legia in a good atmosphere. – We shook hands. Honestly, I was already a bit tired of my busy schedule. During the season I experienced a lot of stress, we played almost three dozen games. The coach has to solve problems – and we had enough of them – but he cannot radically change the situation when they are injured, when there are no good players and those who would be wanted in the team – notes Michniewicz.
And he goes back to his last months in Legia: – Considering that Legia is a rival for every team in the country to beat, many matches ended with surprises. In Poland, a match with Legia is like the last battle for everyone. The goalkeeper injury was a big problem for us Artur Boruc after the September meeting with Spartak. His place was taken by a young goalkeeper [Cezary Miszta]. A good player, but not as much experienced as a veteran to help the team at key moments. Besides, since I took over the team in 2020, 20 players have left Legia, and the 10th team leader – Bartosz Kapustka – he fell out for a long time due to an injury. We didn’t have a player for his position – “ten”, so we had to change our game system, rebuild our style.
This is Michniewicz’s first interview
For Michniewicz, this is the first interview since his release in Legia. However, he did not give it to the Polish press, but to Match TV – a Russian sports TV station that shows all the most important sports events in Russia, including Legia’s matches with Spartak in THE.
“I hear that someone” got very ugly. “Maybe someday there will come a time that I will also” rain down “. Such a loose thought – Michniewicz wrote on Twitter on Tuesday evening. Right after I criticized it there Dariusz Mioduskiwho was a guest in the Legia Talk room, where he answered live questions from journalists and fans (more here).
In an interview with Match TV, Michniewicz does not refer to the president’s words, but reminds that his contract with Legia is valid until the end of the season. – I have fond memories of my working time in Warsaw – we became Polish champions, we played in the qualifying rounds Champions League, but unfortunately we did not qualify for the group stage. But in the Europa League we defeated Spartak and Leicester, although no one gave us a better chance before those games. Legia has not played in the group stage of European cups for several years and now has good prospects for promotion. And this opportunity must be used – emphasizes Michniewicz.
Then he adds: – I watched all Spartak matches. Now this is a different band to the one it was in September. We came to Moscow then, and your club had many problems: fans demanded the president’s departure, insulted his woman, journalists put pressure on the coach at a press conference. And the defeat with Zenith 1: 7? You can call it the end of the world for the Moscow club. Today, however, I see Spartak players celebrating goals – running to hug their coach. This suggests that the team is there, that the necessary chemistry has emerged. One gets the impression that Spartak is as calm as possible now.
Michniewicz himself also seems to be calm about his future. – In May I will go to work in Russia – he laughs in an interview with a Russian journalist and reveals that he already had offers from the Dominican Republic and Cyprus teams, but rejected them. – What attracts me to Russia so much? I speak your language, I understand Russians and their mentality. As a child, I lived with my grandfather in Belarus every summer. And I would definitely be interested in testing myself in Russia. This would be my dream. Only in the Russian Premier League? If it was the team from the first ligi with promotion ambitions, I would also consider such an offer. And Spartak? Oh, it’s a great club! It would be an honor for me to receive such an offer – ends Michniewicz.
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