Arda Turan: We are facing Beşiktaş, if we don't respect that, we'll be in trouble

In the first leg of the UEFA Europa League second qualifying round, Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk will face Beşiktaş away tomorrow. Shakhtar Donetsk manager Arda Turan made statements at the press conference held before the match.

"EXCITING"

Starting his remarks by reminding that football holds beautiful stories, Turan said, "Today is a special story for me in a historic stadium that holds stories. Coming to my own country as the manager of Shakhtar Donetsk is exciting for me. Beşiktaş is a special community with its club, culture, fans, manager, and players. Even in the season they were least happy, they beat Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray, and Athletic Bilbao. You have to play the moments correctly in this stadium. They have many players who can change the moments. This puts us in more competition. We have young and competitive players. We will try to play our game tomorrow without taking a step back. It will be a pity whichever team gets eliminated," he said.

"I THINK FEW TEAMS WIN WITH DEFENSE"

Arda Turan also expressed that he attaches importance to ball possession, saying, "Last year, Beşiktaş was scoring goals with transition play over 60 percent with Giovanni van Bronckhorst. This is related to the player structure. Teams like us can play what they want in moments. They can play transition or set play. The atmosphere can push both ways tomorrow. I don't want to give up on ball possession. I think there are few teams in world history that have won with defense. Greece in 2004 and us at Atletico Madrid. Our philosophy is to have the ball, to dominate. A match between two big teams will be big. Playing the moments will be the key point of the match," he said.

"WE WANT TO ACHIEVE GREAT SUCCESS"

Stating that he is pleased with the development of his players despite having just started the job, the successful manager said, "I respect the game plans of all the coaches from last year. I find it more valuable for my attacking players to receive the ball between the blocks near the penalty area rather than receiving the ball outside the block. I thank my players very much. It is very difficult to change some things in 1 month. But I thank my players. Their development makes me happy. As for the goals we conceded in the last 15 minutes, sometimes in football, energy and your position can change everything. But it is true that we want some changes in defense. To do this, we must be 100 percent physically ready. Then we can go for tactical changes. We focus on principles before tactics. We want to achieve great success in the future. But we will also play to win every match," he said.

"WE WILL BE READY"

The 38-year-old manager stated that it is always difficult to be an opponent to the black-and-white team in Dolmabahçe. Turan said, "Beşiktaş's audience is already one of the most important fans in the world. It is a community I have competed with all my life, but I think we do this with love and friendship. It is a difficult stadium, we will be ready for this. Playing against Beşiktaş is difficult for all teams in the world. I explained this to my players," he said.

"THE IMPORTANT THING IS THE TEAM GOAL"

Adding that he thinks more about the team goal than his personal goals, Arda Turan said, "It is an important match for my career in terms of its story, but I don't think it will affect anything. My dream is to build a long-term structure. This match is an important match for our season and for the development of our players. If the opposite happens, I would be sad, but it won't affect our development," he assessed.

"WE ARE FACING BEŞİKTAŞ, IF WE DON'T RESPECT THAT, WE'LL BE IN TROUBLE"

The manager of the Ukrainian team reiterated that they need to play the moments correctly, saying, "We will play as bravely as one can in this stadium. Sometimes defending well is also bravery. It is important to play the moments correctly. We will try to play like Shakhtar. We are facing Beşiktaş, and if we don't respect that, we'll be in trouble," he said.