I met Valdas Ivanauskas, Lithuanian head coach of “Dila” Gori, at “Arcadia” hotel where this team stayed. Besides managers of the club, Phridon Kervalishvili, former journalist of “World Sport” and head of press office of the club, helped me contact “Arcadia”. It is difficult to get in the hotel.
We went to “Zestafoni”-“Lechia” match. Ivanauskas had thoughtful face. Everybody was laughing, joking in “Dila”. Valdas looked very serious.
One of the best Lithuanian football players of all the time turned out interesting speaker. Ivanauskas played perfectly in “Zalgiris” Vilnius and “Hamburg”.
- How is preparation process going on? Are you satisfied?
- The important moment was that the team welcomed me and I see they believe in me. The football players fulfill their instructions without any pretensions.
- Tell us about problematic positions of the team.
- We need to add one central defender. We have Tomashvili and Kvakhadze. Totadze can play in the center too but I want another one. We have Brazilian Fernando but he got injured at the practicing and I do not know if he can play.
- Do not you have problem in offence?
- I thought about it. We need to strengthen but we do not have time.
- How can you evaluate the match against “Boleslav” (3:2)?
- We won over good team and of course, I am glad. I saw that substitutions strengthen our play.
- Is your aim to become champion of Georgia?
- We must do our best in these four months. Let us wait and see…
- You have information about the Georgian clubs. You have watched their matches. Do you compare Georgian and Lithuanian clubs to each other?
- I told Lithuanian newspaper that there is no development system in my country. Lithuanian football is going back for 10 years. Georgian Championship is on higher level. Football is played here and in Lithuania… It is hard to talk about me but it is fact – football is regressed in Lithuania.
- Whose fault is that?
- It is the fault of Lithuanian Football Federation and nothing can be done if it is not changed. I know Lithuanian U-15, 16, 17, 19 teams and they are without perspective. It is not fault of football players: they are not brought up well. I have information about children’s football in your country and I know you have progress.
- How do you gained information?
- Gocha Tamazashvili is my friend. He collaborates with “Saburtalo”. He tells me news and I visited “Saburtalo” school – “Dila” practiced on its stadium (“Bendela”).
Now changes in “Dila”. Ivanauskas decided to add Latvian goalkeeper Kaspars Ikstens and Cameroonian Lobe. The Lithuanian coach praised Lobe.
Beka Gotsiridze is practicing. The 24-year-old forward lost 10kg in one month and he has to lose another 10kg.
“I will do everything. I will not play in test-match now but everything is ahead”, - Beka told me.
On February 11 “Dila” will play against “Radnicki”. The match will start at 19:00 Tbilisi time. Gia Isiani, general manager of the club, told me perhaps, the match will start 2 hours earlier.
Ilia Nanobashvili from Belek, specially for www.worldsport.ge