More reinforcements are on the way. In the coming days, the club will catch up with the arrivals of goalkeeper Jakub Markovič and Slovak central midfielder Tomáš Rig. “We have an agreement with Marković, who is now at the 21st European Championship, and only formalities are being dealt with. The same applies to Riga, who is with the Slovak national team,” said Baník coach Pavel Hapal.
Have you already analyzed why Baník played for salvation last season?
There is dissatisfaction with the whole season, from start to finish the performances were terribly varied. We played a good match once, we won, then we couldn’t gain points or play in other matches. It’s disappointing. We want to forget about it and you are probably aware of the changes in the staff. I believe that the cabin will change a little and that we will enter the new season completely differently.
How much will the cabin change?
There is a lot of talk now about Tijani, who left us (to Slavia Prague). It was very fast, but that’s how it is in football. That’s why we wanted to bring forward variability, that means fast strikers like Kubala or Tanko. They have slightly different parameters than Tijani and Almási. We also wanted to improve the defensive quality, because we struggled a lot with injuries last season. That’s why Filip Blažek is coming, thanks to that we have a variant of the three-back system.
The new players are not formally signed yet, is it just a formality?
More or less yes, although I don’t want to say it’s a formality, because you know how it is in football… Other names are being worked on.
Goalkeeper Jakub Markovič and midfielder Tomáš Rigo.
And besides them? Were you looking for an alternative on the left side of the defense?
We have some thoughts, but we’ll see, it’s not easy. I believe that something will move before the end of the transfer period or the beginning of the season.
Ndefe is coming back from Liberec, will you have three backs on the right side?
His stay in Liberec worked out for him, he looked very good. He is at the national team meeting, as is Sanneh. We are glad that we have something to choose from, even when we can’t even inflate the staff. I’m not talking about these three defenders, but surely someone will also go outside, perhaps on loan, so that they have more minutes.
Nigerian Fadairo is on trial, what are his chances?
He is the only player on trial. It will be here for a week, we will see how it manifests itself. He passed the tests decently, he is a player in the wing area, he knows how to play one on one. Looks good so far.
Jan Laštůvka and Nemanja Kuzmanovič left the squad. Can you tell me why you made that decision?
To tell the truth, I haven’t had a chance to talk to either Lašty or Kuzma yet. I will want to make contact with them. The end in Baník is probably not easy for them, but from a sporting point of view, we decided to go in a different direction. I would like to thank them for the work they have done for Baník and personally I would like to discuss and debate everything with them.
On the contrary, Jiří Fleišman extended the contract. Does he have a place in the team?
We have a problem at left back, that’s why we counted on him. Jirka has his age, but with some exceptions he performed well.
Still looking forward to the return of Cadu and the Swimmer?
I still hope and believe that they will be both. Of course they are not our players, but we will see what happens in two months of the transfer window.
Would the combination of Ewerton and Plavšič be the ideal option?
I would be very happy to have them both on the team. They are above standard players. Ewerton have been struggling with injuries recently, it started with an unfortunate intervention with Zlín. Then he practically didn’t get into it, but according to the information I have from him, from the doctors, he should be 100% fit by now. He has five weeks to get into it.
Striker Ladislav Almási trained individually at the first training session. Why?
After Zlín, he had a problem with his hamstring, so he is recuperating. We don’t want to rush anything because we know what you’ve been through. He didn’t complete two training sessions in a row, so I hope he can make it to this one. Therefore, we approach this with caution.
