Berti Vogts: ‘We are beginning new phase’

Head coach of the Azerbaijani national football team Berti Vogts gave an interview to AFFA’s website before the training session in Dubai to start on Feb.22.

About Nazim Suleymanov

He will go to Dubai as my assistant. We want to give Suleymanov an opportunity to stay with the team. I want to see how he conducts the training process, how he works with the players. Our goal is to enable coaches of Azerbaijan to show themselves in the work with the team.

Why Nazim? I know that in the past he was a good football player. We must have a frank conversation. We must believe in each other. I heard many good things about Nazim. I want to be sure of it. After the training it will be clear whether we will continue to work together or not. This will depend on both of us.

As for my former assistant - Veli Gasimov, we decided that he will focus on the work in the U-19. Combining the work in primary and junior teams created difficulties”.

About the team

With this training session, we are beginning a new phase. This is a very important period of the preparatory process. This training is not only for the World Cup Qualifier 2014, but  for the games for the right to get to Euro 2016. Young players now have to gain experience and be ready for international matches. Regardless of our staff, who will play in the next three matches, I do not want to lose any of them.

The training session in Dubai will not be the holidays for the players. This week they will play three games. It will be difficult. But even during the qualifying tournament we will have paired matches, when you have to play in  three days on  the fourth. It is important that young players are accustomed to this rhythm. We will leave for a great staff in Dubai and every footballer must be ready.
 
The next stage of training will be held in April in Baku. In late May - early June, we will hold two more friendly matches. And in the last game in August,  we will face Bahrain.  With this our preparation for the selection of the 2014 World Cup ends. We would like to gain three points in the home match in September.

About opponents

"The teams that we play in Dubai, show a similar game with the Israeli team. Israel does not play fast football. This team prefers a short pass.

Of course, we would like to play against stronger opponents, but most of them are now preparing for the European Championships, and they have their own training plan. It must be said that teams that we will play in Dubai, are not far behind us in the rankings”.

About coaches

"I want that in the future we, together with the coaches of the Azerbaijani Premier League would take part in the training process of English and German clubs. It is important for coaches. In the meantime, they can gain something useful by participating in our training camp in Dubai. Maybe I'll learn something from them. During the discussion you always learn something new. This is a normal process. Of course, we will talk there with the coaches. We must have open relationship. I hope that the content of our conversations will not be disclosed to the public. I am ready to answer each question of the coaches.

Do coaches sometimes complain that the national team players are overloaded? Our training program is designed for professional players. When players talk about fatigue after exercise in the team, this means that the earlier they are not practiced as they should. Every year we pass medical tests. The training process is made according to the players performance in these tests."