2024-03-04 03:08:04
“It’s a really long story. I’ve been on this team for almost 15 years.”
As reported by İdman.biz, Qarabag head coach Gurban Gurbanov stated this in an interview with the Turkish press.
The 52-year-old expert spoke about the path leading to historic results in Europe. Gurbanov recalled his arrival in Karabakh:
“At the beginning we had problem days and games. When we arrived at Qarabag, we held meetings with the management. After several meetings, it was said that they take this team very seriously. Club President Abdulbari Gozal told me that he promised Heydar Aliyev “that will promote this team in Europe. This was the mission we were given.”
Gurbanov also spoke about the first successes:
“For me, as an Azerbaijani, this became a great motivation. Although we did not achieve a very good result in the championship, we won the Azerbaijan Cup and began to play in the Europa League. First we reached the playoffs in European competition. For that time it was a huge success. After we reached the playoffs, we spoke on the phone with President Ilham Aliyev, he congratulated us and expressed his approval. This became an additional reason to strengthen our work, additional motivation. Now we are in our 15th-16th year of work. This is how our career began and the foundation of our work was laid. It is known what the name “Garabagh” means to us and what attention we pay to the club. Together with the management, we have done a lot of work to preserve this name. Today we see the results of this.”
Gurbanov emphasized the importance of the name “Karabakh”:
“We work here with great responsibility and heart. We have a good team in terms of management, staff and players. This is how things stand today. Motivation starts with me, with how I set myself up and prepare for the games. Then I demand this from the players. Our main motivation is the name of this team – “Garabagh”. All legionnaires are told what Karabakh means and what the meaning of this name is for Azerbaijan. Fortunately, the legionnaires are also interested. We have a separate working group that informs football players about the country and Karabakh. They understand it.”
The head coach also touched upon the match against MOIK that took place in Khankendi:
“After our glorious victory, after the 44-day war, the players better understood what the name “Karabakh” actually means. We started, played in Khankendi. It was an Azerbaijan Cup match with MOIK. It was a very important day. Watching the match both the head of the country and first vice-president Mehriban Aliyeva took part. Almost all government bodies were involved. The children of martyrs were also there. It was an unforgettable day. Of course, it was the beginning, and a very serious beginning. I don’t believe that anyone -he will forget this day. Today we can talk a lot about it, what the feelings were, how they prepared, how the players felt. I myself was in Khankendi for the first time. I had been to Shusha before, but I had not been to Khankendi. It was a very important day. “Thank you, the head of the country agreed and decided to hold such a match there, and he himself took part in watching it. It was a great message to the whole world.”
İdman.biz