Jop: We have to work very hard to finalize

Before departing for their training camp in Turkey, Wisła Kraków's players tested their mettle in their first winter friendly against Podbeskidzie Bielsko-Biała. Coach Mariusz Jop spoke with us about their assessment of the match, the team's current situation, and their plans for the camp.

"The first week was all about tests and an introduction to regular training, which allowed us to individualize our work, create training groups, and show us the direction we should be heading, what we should pay more attention to when it comes to motor skills. This week we worked a lot on our defense, especially pressing, high and medium defense. There were six training sessions in four days, with two training sessions on Tuesday and Thursday. It was a big burden for the players. Of course, it wasn't like we were preparing for a friendly, but rather treated it as a form of training with an opponent. In this respect, the motor goals were achieved. Some old problems resurfaced and became more visible. We definitely know that—we knew it beforehand, too—that we have to work a lot on finishing, positioning in the penalty area, the quality of our crosses, and shooting decisions. It's about the things we saw in the friendly. Sometimes we play our moves too tightly, we lacked shooting decisions. When we did manage to take shots, yes, "As in the case of Kiakos, for example, they were imprecise, although 100 percent accurate. The positive thing is that there were quite a few such opportunities, but the effectiveness needs improvement. This is something we will also need in the league, because such moments are quite frequent. We are in a positional attack, we need to create opportunities and be able to finish them," he began.

Kacper Duda and Patryk Gogół were unable to play in the friendly, which compounded Wisła's midfield woes. "The situation was such that we had 24 players, including Yehor Khromykh, who quickly joined us, including 21 outfield players. Above all, we wanted to ensure that most of them had roughly equal playing time. We had some limitations when it came to player formation; not everyone played in their intended position, because Jesus Alfaro, for example, isn't a classic number eight. He's more of a player who plays in a different position. As for Fazlagić, he's healthy and training with us, so he also got time to show his skills." Yehor is a midfielder, and we had a bit of trouble filling those positions," he continued. "Kacper reported a minor infection after training on Thursday. It had progressed a bit, so we didn't want to risk it sidelining him for the start of camp preparations. So we decided it would be best for him to stay home and recover so he could start training normally on Sunday. Patryk Gogół couldn't be considered either, as he also had a minor issue, hence the move for Yehor, who had performed well in the reserves but is a midfielder," he added.

Karol Dziedzic is on trial at Stal Stalowa Wola. Is it certain that the midfielder will spend the next six months on loan? "The decision always comes last. I admit, we expected a move to midfield sooner, but the situation has become a bit complicated, and then a loan move would definitely have been possible. Now, however, we have to re-evaluate and decide whether it would be better for Wisła Kraków for Dziedzic to play, or for him to stay with us as an alternative in midfield. It's possible that he'll fly to Turkey, as he's scheduled to play a friendly on Saturday, and technically, it would be very difficult to arrange for him to fly with us straight away. He's currently finishing his trials in Stalowa Wola, and we'll see," he continued. "It's no coincidence that he went to Stalowa Wola for trials. We're taking into account how Stal plays, what their philosophy is – a lot of building, playing football, and that would be beneficial for Karol's development. We'll continue to talk to the sporting director here," he said.

Filip Baniowski extended his contract with Wisła Kraków on Friday, which is good news for both parties. "I think this calms things down for him because he knows where he stands. He knows what his immediate future holds, but it's also good news for us because we know we can bet on a guy like him, because when someone isn't planning their future with Wisła Kraków, it's hard to count on him. Filip is an interesting player. He stood out in the reserve team, as did Kuziemka. They train with us, they will train with us, and they're going to camp with us. And after that? We'll see. This is competition, this is friendlies, time for work ahead, and they'll get their chance. I'm counting on them as much as any other player. Everyone has the opportunity to show their skills here, and if they perform at a very good level, it's not impossible that one of them will have the chance to play in league matches, even from the start, so that's an open question," he noted.

Injured players will also be attending camp, with the exception of Joseph Colley. When asked which of them is closest to returning, the coach replied: "Bartek Talar started preparations with us from the very beginning. He is not taking part in games yet, he is a neutral player, without contact with the opponent. However, he has completed all training sessions with us and has no complaints. He looks very good, so I hope he will be able to start playing normally and maybe take part in some friendly matches. Igor Łasicki has also started rehabilitation after the surgery. I think he will definitely be in running training during the camp. I don't know if he will be able to start working with the whole team. Marc Carbo is definitely a longer issue, because he has to walk on crutches for another two weeks, but of course he is undergoing rehabilitation and will travel with us to Turkey. Joseph Colley is supposed to join us after the camp. He is continuing his rehabilitation at home and we will see how the situation looks. Let's remember that it was a very serious injury and there could be many complications when he takes on more load. I don't want to make predictions here, but I would like him to be healthy as soon as possible and be able to play." "I'm not going to train with us, because that would raise the level of competition. However, I can't answer the question of when Colley will be able to train and play, as I think a lot can still happen. From what I know, rehabilitation is progressing as planned, with weights gradually increasing. This leg is responding appropriately, which bodes well for him. However, I wouldn't want to give any specific dates here, as it's still too much of an unknown."

No new players have joined the R22 team yet. What's the situation? "We're waiting for final decisions. Some topics are being discussed, but as is often the case in this business, sometimes they are, then it turns out they aren't, and someone else comes in. From a coach's perspective, I'd definitely like to see these moves made as soon as possible, because every player joining the club needs time to adapt, and that's a natural thing. However, we also have to weigh our strengths against our strengths. We have some problems, some limitations, so I'm waiting to see what the sporting director can do. It's not that there aren't a few topics being started, because there are, but I don't know if they'll be finalized," he replied.

Three goalkeepers played in the friendly against Podbeskidzie, which the coach also commented on: "Jakub Stępak is returning from a long injury. He's been rehabilitating for six months, so he still needs some time to get back to that level. As for the other three, there's obviously competition. If someone says a player might leave, I always say: who should replace them? Because I can imagine a situation where Stępak isn't fully fit yet because he's returning from an injury, and one of the three goalkeepers is injured. Who is the backup then? Who is available for training as a third or fourth goalkeeper? Everyone is here at the moment, competing, and I think that's the optimal situation for Wisła at the moment."

On Saturday, January 18th, the White Star team will begin preparations in Turkey, where they will head to training camp: "This week has already been very intense, as there has been a lot of work, and the players have done it very well. The next two weeks will also be challenging in terms of workload, with four friendlies. We have a lot of work ahead of us. The conditions will be good for this, as we know the weather there is better than in Poland. We will want to make the most of this time. When we return, we will probably play against Hutnik Kraków."