"I want to be like Karpol": Likhachev on the work in the Russian national team, the Beach Soccer World Cup and Karpin's refusal to combine

- For you, the 2021 World Cup will be the fifth at the helm of the national team.

Is the anticipation of this tournament different from the previous ones?

- On the one hand, the upcoming World Cup is home, so we all feel additional responsibility.

There is a certain tension.

On the other hand, any world championship is a very significant and important tournament.

Everyone understands that there are not many such competitions in life.

There is a great desire to perform successfully at each of them.

And here even more so - Moscow, Luzhniki, native fans.

- Some believe that at the home world championship the Russian national team will play practically in the same composition as at the previous world championship.

- Certain changes are still there, but in general it is really about the same team that represented the country at the 2019 World Cup.

I hope that the experience of playing that championship will have a positive effect.

- In big football they would surely sound the alarm that the current leaders do not have a worthy change.

How do you rate this yourself?

- We have young players who already have experience of playing at the previous championship - Ostap Fedorov and Andrey Novikov.

And a few more people will be added soon.

You will find out their names shortly.

I think the fusion of youth and experience should help us to play successfully in the tournament.

- As far as I know, initially the Russian national team was going to announce the composition on August 9, but in the end it was decided to do it on the 15th.

What is the reason for this?

- With the personal interests of the national team.

There are certain aspects that we want to take into account in the final selection of the lineup.

We need a little time.

- In your opinion, in what way is the current team superior to the one that played in Paraguay in 2019?

- I don’t think the differences are that big.

Still, two years is not a very long time.

Yes, the team has become a little more experienced, but the acquisition of such qualities is not limited to everything, you need to prepare well for the tournament.

I think the current squad has everything it needs to show a good result at the home world championship.

- In addition to Russia, name the top three contenders for the victory at the 2021 World Cup.

- Brazil, Portugal and Spain.

- Why exactly they?

- In my opinion, the Brazilians are favorites of any tournament in which they take part.

Their level is incomparably higher than that of representatives of any other national team.

But beach football is good because here you can neutralize the strengths of the enemy at the expense of your head and tactical tricks.

The Portuguese have achieved high results in many international competitions in recent years and have a wealth of experience.

Spain now has an ideal balance of young and experienced players, a large group of very bright athletes.

It seems to me that this team is now in its prime.

- For big football, finding a coach at the helm of the national team for 11 years is an extremely rare case.

How can you explain such longevity?

- I think the reason is that, under my leadership, the Russian team competed in four world championships, won two golds and two bronzes.

It seems to me that it was difficult to expect a better result.

I understand that at each tournament you need to prove your skills - not only for the players, but also for the coaches.

Apparently, while he did not give a reason to doubt his qualifications, he proved with the results that I can benefit national football.

- Perhaps, in big football, the most striking example of such a long stay at the helm of the national team was Joachim Loew ...

- Are you hinting at something?

(laughs)

If it's humor, then it's black and harsh, but I accept it.

- No, but taking into account your long stay at the helm of the team, it was probably difficult to avoid comparisons with the conventional Leo or Alex Ferguson?

- Personally, I want to be like a volleyball coach Nikolai Karpol, who has been heading Uralochka for 52 years.

There are excellent examples in Russian sports as well.

- Holding one position over such a period of time is certainly not easy.

Have you ever thought about wanting a change of scenery?

- It cannot be said that I deliberately thought about resignation.

Of course, during this period there were both loud victories and heavy defeats.

Yes, the latter were not so many, but still.

I am very pleased to be engaged in the business that I know and love very well.

I would like to remain useful for the national team and the entire Russian football.

- In 2017, you headed the Moscow Spartak, but two years later you gave up the combination in favor of the national team.

I have heard that this was done in the interests of the national team.

Is the wording correct?

- Not really.

In my opinion, at that moment, the combination helped out the national team in many ways.

In just one season, a number of Spartak players made tremendous progress, which helped them first become candidates, and then full-fledged members of the Russian national team.

- What then was the reason for leaving Spartak?

- In 2019, the national team had to spend a very difficult season, which included a large number of prestigious international tournaments.

My employment in the national team would have hit hard on the quality of work at the club.

We decided that physically and emotionally I could not stand such a schedule.

- Do you see certain parallels between your departure from Spartak in 2019 and Valery Karpin's decision to refuse to combine?

- I perfectly understand Karpin, who realized that it would be very difficult for him to lead both the Russian national team and Rostov.

In my opinion, the decision is absolutely logical.

I can only support him and wish him success.

As for the combination in general, I think it's not always a bad thing.

There are enough reverse examples.

Another thing is that it is necessary to correctly structure the work in order for it to have an effect.

- Since that moment, have you had any desire to work in the club again?

- It would be nice for the whole Russian beach football, and not just for me.

Now the situation leaves much to be desired.

Only seven clubs took part in the last national championship.

It is bitter to realize that this happens in the year of the home world championship.

The number of participating teams is absolutely insignificant.

With our performances over the past ten years, we have proved that there should be more high-quality teams in Russia.

Even so, our national championship is in good standing, but the leagues of Italy and Portugal, at least, caught up with us.

And if we take into account the last season, then even surpassed.

- What led to this situation?

- In 2018, there were nine teams in the Russian championship, and the quality of both coaches and football players was noticeably higher. The league was much stronger. As for 2020, it is good that the country's championship was held at all. The situation with the coronavirus was extremely unpleasant, they played practically without the involvement of legionnaires. A year later, we lost two more clubs, and the number of participants in the competition included teams that had no experience of playing in the top division. I mean the Petersburg Lex. In addition, not all of this seven could boast of financial well-being.

As the head coach of the national team and the person who took part in the construction of the national beach football, this cannot but upset me.

I think we can count on 10-12 high-quality teams to play in the league.

After the World Cup, we need to sit down at a round table and make any decisions so that the sport continues to develop and not stagnate.

- What way out of this situation do you see?

- The path followed by women's classic football is close and understandable to me.

Now many RPL clubs have their own women's teams - Zenit, Krasnodar, Rubin, Rostov, CSKA, Lokomotiv.

I believe that for us this could also become a kind of lifeline.

Especially considering the fact that the costs of maintaining the club are low.

- As far as we know, the budget of the Moscow "Spartak" is about 10 billion rubles.

How much does it take to maintain a beach soccer club?

- Ten, but not billion.