Mladen Bartulovich: "Winning by Law"

The head coach of "Metalist 1925" Mladen Bartulovich commented on the victory over "Veres" in the final round and answered questions from Rivne journalists:

— Mladen, how much did the moral burden lift after this victory? How important was it to end the season on a high note for you and the team?

— Firstly, I congratulate everyone on the end of the season and congratulate my team, the whole club, and the guys on today's victory, as it was very important. Yes, of course, we really wanted to win because the last matches were without victories, and today we aimed to win. The guys did everything they could for this. The match was tough, there were many moments. There were matches where we scored the first goal, then conceded from a set piece, but I believe we deserved to win today. We were the better team, wanted to score more. "Veres" was waiting for their chances on counterattacks. It was logical that we won and ultimately finished fifth.

— Fifth place in the championship, semifinals of the Cup. How would you evaluate the season overall?

— The season showed that we have great potential. Already in the next season, with the right strengthening of the squad, we will set even higher goals and try to achieve them. We need to draw the right conclusions from this season, understand what we can improve, have good training camps, and go into battle from the first round in the new season.

— Do you already know the positions you would like to strengthen first?

— We want to strengthen many positions.

— Many coaches note that it is very difficult to play against "Veres" in Rivne. And for you - a victory in the first match and a victory in this match. How do you assess these results? How did you manage to find the key to our team?

— I am very happy that we win here because I know how coach Shandruk works here. I respect him for his work, for how he tries to get the maximum out of "Veres". I believe he is doing a good job, and it is always difficult to play here. Yes, we won, but it was a tough match for us.

— I want to thank you for speaking Ukrainian so well. Not all Ukrainians speak Ukrainian as nicely and melodiously as you do.

— Thank you. I always try to improve it.