About Hradec, Portugal and injured players
8/1/2023, Editorial Board
After the 1:0 win over Hradec, Jindřich Trpišovský spoke about the level of the game, the health of the squad and the nomination for the Portuguese training camp, where the players will fly to on Tuesday.
You have completed your first warm-up game. Why did you start your training with Hradec?
“Negotiations took place at the end of autumn, when Hradec said that they would like to play with us. We considered it, even given the deadline. We only have foreign opponents at the training camp, and the Czech league is something else entirely. That’s why we took advantage of the fact that we can play with the Czech team. The match was very competitive even for the fact that it was a warm-up match. We also wanted to take advantage of that because we knew we would have a lot of players. We wanted players like Denis Halinský and Daniel Šmiga to get into the match. The match was pre-negotiated already at the end of autumn, we just said that we would confirm it later, taking into account the number of players on both sides.”
In what condition did the players return after the break?
“We trained for another fortnight after that, then they had a fortnight of absolute rest. Then they had training plans where they ran more than a hundred kilometers. There were also other exercises. We checked everything with running tests. Even thanks to the competition that is in the club, they know that they have to come prepared. We have had a lot of physical preparation in the first week, there was a lot of running that followed up on what had come before. I warned the players that the first week would be more challenging. Then Portugal is waiting for us, where we will focus mainly on game things. Ninety percent of the players came prepared as needed. Of the rest, for example, Kuba Hromada had high temperatures over Christmas, he dropped out. There are some leftovers, but mostly due to illness, that’s why they couldn’t fulfill the plan. The ones we didn’t see are still catching up. That’s why they weren’t in the match today either.”
What is the medical staff like?
“David Pech will go for an examination, it’s a problem on the front of the thigh muscle, when he felt a pinch in it. It’s a preparation, we didn’t want to risk it, so we took it down right away. Overall, the condition of the squad is very good, the only thing missing is Lukáš Masopust, who is on antibiotics, got angina after three days. Tomáš Holeš and David Hovorka are planning their return. Ivan Schranz trained everything with the team, but after his injury we didn’t want to risk him going into head-to-head fights. Taras Kačaraba is also injured, who brought an injury from individual plans.”
Have you already decided on the players who will fly to the training camp in Portugal?
“We are clear about the nomination, it was a given. But maybe we will adjust it according to David Pecha’s health situation. There is a given number of players that we have to take to the training camp. We certainly liked Daniel Šmiga a lot in the match with Hradec. We are considering bringing him along to be with the A-Team. He is a very interesting player, he showed that. We are clear, we will go with the entire squad that is currently being prepared, except for long-term marauders like David Hovorka, for whom it is better to stay and undergo therapy in Prague. We will discuss with Taras Kačaraba if he will fly with us or if it would be better for him to stay in Prague, I’ll see you after the check-up.”