FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
The President of the Football Federation, Armand Duka, gave an interview to "Euronews Albania" with journalist Esmeralda Mulaj, where he spoke about the match against Serbia, the emotions of the national team, the play-off phase and the objectives for qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.
President Duka praised the dedication of the red and black team, the organization of the match in Serbia, and emphasized that football should always remain a bridge of unity between peoples, despite rivalries.
The match against Serbia? - We were quite loaded and emotional, because it was an important match that would decide whether or not we could continue for a place in the World Cup play-off phase, but also for all the burdens that the Albania - Serbia match has. But thanks to the organization of the Serbian Federation, everything went very well from an organizational point of view, accommodation, travel, playing conditions and thanks to the commitment of the footballers, their play, the result was very beautiful and pleased us.
How much emotion did the National Team have before this match? - National team matches are always more charged, I think, than club matches. The responsibility of a National team jersey is much greater. But considering this match, specifically against Serbia, or to continue the path to a possible qualification for the World Cup, it made it even more exciting and charged. It was the same for both teams. The team that would be calmer and that would manage emotions better would come out victorious. I think our team did that.
Who calmed the players emotionally, you or Silvinjo? - First, you have to be prepared to manage emotionally, you have to have a kind of professional level that our team has. But, without a doubt, all of us together have made a kind of contribution to managing the team well, to not go into emotional overload, but to maintain the balance of commitment and emotions.
How much did Silvinjo understand the emotion outside the playing field? - Silvinjo has maximally appreciated the match in terms of sport, to achieve victory, to continue the path to qualification for the World Cup, because achieving qualification is still difficult. But I don't believe that he understood the weight of that victory in the same way that we understood it. His satisfaction is more sporting and less emotional. Ours is together.
The chants in the Serbia - Albania match? - The chants, unfortunately, have accompanied our matches with Serbia in Tirana and in Serbia. Even in the matches when we do not play against Serbia, our chants are no more friendly than theirs; the same goes for the Serbian side. They completely distance themselves from football institutions, such as the Albanian Football Association and the Serbian Federation, as well as the Albanian National Team and the Serbian National Team, and it is not that they want these things. This is a game and we should experience it as such, as a competition that carries out missions of unification, communication bridges and not division of people. It is very bad that these chants exist, but what you say is not true, that someone is favored and someone is penalized, because unfortunately we also heard yesterday, when Kosovo played with Sweden, the same things that should not exist. Or when Albania plays against Andorra or Georgia, we hear the same things that should not exist. I think that this match between Albania and Serbia has made a positive contribution to achieving a kind of balance and perspective on things.
Rey Manaj's yellow card - It is a big abuse that Rey Manaj got a card for celebrating with an eagle. This is not a true thing. Manaj got a card because he went to celebrate on the opposing team's bench which is considered and is a provocation. You can do the eagle from morning to night and you don't get penalized. I am very happy with the result and with what happened on the field and with Rey's goal and celebration.
The ups and downs of the national team - Our team has been on the rise constantly in recent years with progress. But always winning in football does not exist, not even for teams that are considered very big. Football has all three results, the differences are not that big. Especially in national teams. We saw France against Iceland that drew 2-2 or we saw Kosovo that won twice against Sweden, a team with a tradition in European football. The differences are small and there are not always positive results.
The last two matches against Andorra and England - We must give Andorra maximum respect, it is a very important match from which we can get a ticket to play in the play-offs. We must concentrate maximally, with maximum respect. Theoretically we have a better team, we have all the possibilities to win it and we go to win it. England is one of the best teams in the world, not only in Europe. They also need to be respected as much as they deserve. We will play our cards in this stadium.
Kosovo's victory against Sweden - They have very good and quality footballers. It's no surprise that they won both matches. They deserved the victory in the first match in Pristina, they deserved it last night and they deserve to be part of the World Cup.
What if both Albania and Kosovo qualified for the World Cup? - It would be fantastic if we could support two national teams. But even if it was only 1, we would be happy.
E siguroi postin ky kodoshi i ryshfeteve edhe per disa vjet. Kot nuk i thone pac fatin e kurves.