Rudé before #STAWIS: Together for promotion!

It's time for the return of the FORTUNA 1 League! On Sunday—practically at noon—Wisła will kick off this part of the season with a match against Stal in Rzeszów. Coach Albert Rudé met with journalists before the match.

The following players will not be playing in the match against Stal due to injuries:

- Kamil Broda - who has torn abdominal muscles;

- Patryk Gogół - who has a damaged meniscus and will undergo surgery;

- Bartosz Talar - who tore his cruciate ligaments and will also undergo surgery.

Injuries to Patryk Gogół and Bartosz Talar complicate the midfield situation. Will the club look to sign someone to replace them? "That's an interesting question. This week brought an injury to Talar and the decision to have surgery on Gogół, who has been struggling with a problem since the beginning of preparations. We'll have to adapt to this new situation and we'll be considering who to replace them with," he began. The newcomer among the goalkeepers is Jakub Stępak, who, in the absence of Kamil Broda, serves as the second-choice goalkeeper for Wisła. "We all know what our goalkeeping situation is. As for Stępak, he had a great pre-season. In Kamil Brody's absence, he's the second goalkeeper. He's ready, he's part of the team. We'll address our goalkeeping situation," he added.

When asked if the White Star coaches were observing their nearest opponent, the coach replied: "My staff did a great job, thoroughly analyzing the opponent. We'll want to adapt to our nearest opponent as best as possible to play good football. In my opinion, this match won't be boring. Stal has young, bold players who know how to exploit space. They want to play football, and that's why I think it will be interesting."

On Friday evening, GKS Tychy will face Odra Opole. Who on the coaching staff will be watching this match? "This man who is translating my words here will go immediately after the press conference to observe the opponents. He takes care of everything, the translation and the observation. He's a busy man," he noted.

What hopes will the Wisła Kraków coach have for Sunday's match? "The most important thing will be our attitude. It's about being brave and confident in what we do. There's no turning back. We want to play our game all the time. We pass on that confidence to the players because that's our role, to do that," he continued. "The pre-season was very good. It was the right time to test the team and build relationships. We did all of this primarily in Turkey. We are ready, and I believe we will be able to show it in the next match," he added.

There was also a question about the mental aspect, does the coach attach great importance to this element? "During the preseason, we built everything. It's not just how we play that counts, but also our attitude towards it. I won't lie – we'll make mistakes, of course, but the most important thing will be how we deal with them during matches. Our team knows we believe in them. Let's believe in our path and we will never give up," he emphasized.

Two days before the match, does he already have in mind the eleven that will be playing in Rzeszów and does the coach intend to field two defensive midfielders, as was the case in the friendly (Sapała and Carbo)? "First of all, during the preseason, we played with multiple starting elevens. We tried many formations. In my opinion, Sapała isn't a defensive player; he has a lot of quality with the ball at his feet, he also has good relationships with other players, and he has a lot of skills to give us quality in attack. During the preseason, the competition was at a high level, and I was wondering who should play. The players on the bench will be very important, ready to come on and help us in every match," he suggested. "We had enough time to get started, to work on the basics. We were able to build a foundation for our path during the preseason, an idea of ​​how we want to play. This is a process that takes time. Our mindset is to always be competitive and fight for three points in every match," he announced.

Jakub Krzyżanowski is one of the players in whom Wisła Kraków places its hopes. "He's made progress. He's a young talent, a great talent. We're here to help him, to develop all the areas he's lacking because he's young. This is a normal process for any player. However, there's no doubt today that he's fighting for a place in the starting lineup," he said.

What kind of Wisła will fans see on Sunday? "We always want to control the game, and if you want to control the ball, the best way is to have possession. I'm not a man who is guided by just one idea. Control is the most important thing. This also applies to the opponent. Sometimes the opponent will be low on the pitch and you have to exploit other spaces. Our main idea is to control the situation on the pitch, to dominate it," he added. "We have competition in every position. Everyone has to be ready to come on the pitch and help us. As a coaching staff, we have to use the players who will help us win. We want everyone ready, regardless of whether they're in first or second place in the competition. We have the Polish Cup, we have the league, everyone has to be ready to play," he added.

The Ekstraklasa started a week ago, has the coach already watched a match at this level? "I tried watching the Ekstraklasa because the context is that we hope to play there next season. So for now, I'll say, 'Together for promotion!'" he concluded.