FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
The president of the AFL, Armand Duka, was invited to the Turkish channel "TRT World" where he spoke about the very good edition of Albania in the qualifying campaign. The head of the Albanian football government said that the success of the national team came as a result of the good work done over the years. He also appreciated the investments made in the infrastructure, where he singled out the training center in the "House of Football", describing it as the best in the Balkans, while underlining that in this qualification of the National Team in "EURO 2024" ; they all deserve it. Regarding the finals of the European Championship, President Duka said that the main objective is to qualify for the next round.
– What is behind Albania's success in "EURO 2024"?
Albania's success did not come by chance, it did not happen in a day or a month, but as a result of the voluminous work that has been done for years. After our first qualification in a European in 2016, our great desire was to repeat this success. Every match is a lesson, every win, loss or draw has its benefits. Success doesn't just come from the field or the players. Of course, the footballers have the main merit, but success is not one-way.
When we talk about a successful qualifying edition, I want to say that it is not only the credit of the players but also of the staff who take care of everything, so that everything is perfect. When we entrusted Coach Silvinjo with the direction of the Albanian National Football Team, in January we had only one objective: Qualifying for "EURO 2024". The merit is not only of the players and the staff but also of the Albanian Football Federation. Everyone has done a very good job. Since March, the Albanian National Team has its campus in the "House of Football", one of the most modern campuses in the Balkans and not only, which has everything, new fields, gym and all the conditions for the team and players in order to reach this success.
- What was the reaction of the people in Albania when your national team finished the qualifiers as the first in the group? How important is this to your country?
All of us, all the fans were happy after this well-deserved success and everyone thinks that this team can also win the European Championship (laughs). Albania's performance in this qualifying edition has been fantastic in all matches. Even when we lost in the first challenge against Poland, the fans were satisfied with the performance of the team.
This was the most successful journey for the National team, not only because it secured the first place in the group but also for the very good performance and the very beautiful goals scored by our players. Let me remind you that the goals of Kristjan Asllani and Yasir Asani were voted as the second and third most beautiful goals by the fans on the official UEFA website.
– How important is it for the Balkan countries to go to the finals of the European Championship? What does it mean especially for small countries like Albania?
Behind the success is a lot of work from the Federations, from the teams, the players and the support from every actor in the country. The support from the fans, from the government, all together lead to a great success even for small countries like Albania and other countries in the Balkans. I think the most important thing is working tirelessly and with passion.
– What should be done to be successful again?
For Albania and other small countries, it is not often that they qualify for a major tournament such as the European one. Therefore qualification is very important for us. To continue this success at the same level for countries like us is not easy, but we must continue to work and maintain the same level.
I think that the fans from the Balkans and Albania should become many fans in Germany because during the qualifying edition the support of the public in our country has been great. We have had the stadium full every game, tickets sold out in an hour and now we have a big 'problem' with the fans. They want everyone to come to Germany and I believe that this is a very good thing for the country, for the future and to have as many children and young people as possible in our beautiful game.
– What do you expect from the European?
For us, it is a great success that we are part of the European and now we have to prepare. I wish that all the players are in good health, so that we can prepare everything well. We have a very difficult group with very big teams. Italy, the reigning European champion, Spain, the European and World champion, and Croatia, a very good team. But I believe that all the teams in Europe are very strong.
Every team has quality, even Turkey. I think that Turkey has the quality to reach the final, why not to win the European Championship, as well as Serbia, all the teams. For us, the important thing is to perform well in the group and our objective is to qualify further. I hope that we will achieve this objective, however, we have achieved a great success and are part of "EURO 2024".
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