Shek Borkowski Official Website | LTA Agency » admin

Three players I would love to have in my team

admin — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:36:44 +0000

Linda Bresonik

I was asked last week what three players I would like to have in my team. Here they are.
For me, Linda Bresonik (GER, pictured) is the most complete and most versatile player in the world. She can play anywhere on the field, is technically and tactically very good, and has a very strong physical presence.
Inka Grings (GER) is a pure goal scorer. The timing and precision of her runs, her movement and composure make her in my mind the best pure scorer in the world.
Lori Chalupny (USA) is another top player. Her physical tenacity and versatility make her very effective in the women’s game.
I know I will get criticism for not having Marta in my top three but for me Marta while a very exciting, dynamic player is not necessarily ideally suited for every team. She is an instinctive, emotional player who needs lots of tactical freedom and a team which plays for her. You could at times see how frustrated she was in LA, and how there was little understanding between her and her teammates. Only Miyama seemed to be on the same page as Marta.
-
If you have a question for Shek, you can submit it through Twitter at http://twitter.com/ShekBorkowski

About Zvezda

admin — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 12:53:34 +0000

The Zvezda Stadium

We compete in the Russian Womenâ€™s Premier League. The level of competition is very good, players are technically very sound, and premium is placed on tactical discipline. We play in the Zvezda Stadium, capacity 20,000 (pictured).

Zvezda and Rossiyanka are considered the top two teams with majority of Russia WNT players in the two sides. Russia has two places in the UEFA Womenâ€™s Champions League (CL) and both us and Rossiyanka have qualified for the 2010 CL.
Champions League is one of the main reasons I was keen on moving to Russia. I would submit that CL is the best womenâ€™s club competition in the world.
Playing in any league, teams know their opponents very well, get in a routine and at times the excitement is not there. For the best teams in Europe, CL represents an opportunity to face opponents with different playing styles, philosophies, and of higher abilities than they routinely face in their domestic leagues.
When Zvezda faced Norwegian league and cup winners Roa IL, our opponents had in their squad 11 players with at least 1 international cap for Norway.

Zvezda starters

For our home game we had about 3,000 fans, and they were LOUD. (Singing, flag waving, flares are part and parcel of our games). It was fun, and I canâ€™t wait till we get going again.
Our daily routine is rather simple. Players get in the lockeroom around 10:00AM. Training starts at 11:00AM.
At 1:00PM we have lunch in the stadium cafeteria – food is quality and plentiful.
We train again at 6:00PM and eat dinner around 7:45PM.
Our stadium has artificial, heated turf of the highest quality and is very well maintained by the stadium crew.
Our nearest league opponent is located about 700 miles away, so we fly to all of our games. The club owns two buses, but we rarely use them except to take us to the airport and back.
Our current staff includes a GM, equipment person, a full time sports medicine doctor, a full time masseur, a video guy, me, Kaloyan, and two Russian assistant coaches.
Life in Russia, though different, is good. Food is relatively inexpensive and of very good quality, while electronics and clothing are much more expensive than in the US.
-
If you have a question for Shek, you can submit it through Twitter at http://twitter.com/ShekBorkowski

UEFA Women’s Champions League

admin — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 05:58:56 +0000

Well, we went out of the UEFA Womenâ€™s Champions League on the away goals rule after 0:0 in Oslo and 1:1 in Russia.
We played poorly in Oslo but still could have snatched a 1:0 win but for Roaâ€™s goalkeeper Caroline Knutsen who made 4 key saves in both legs. In the return leg we went down 1:0 in the second minute on Guro Knutsen’s 2nd minute goal but recovered well, took the game to Roa, tied it 1:1 on Natalia Barbashinaâ€™s excellent goal, and hit the post and a crossbar. But it was not to be.
No complaints from me, my players did what I asked of them, and Roa were compact, disciplined and defended with 10 players to make it difficult on us.
Had a chance to speak with Becca Sauerbrunn who played left back for Roa, she did well in both games. I like her as a player.
Now, I will need to improve Zvezda in 5 positions and am confident we will progress further next year.
We will begin our pre-season on January 18 in Antalya, Turkey. I expect to bring in about 25 players to look at. From Turkey we will go to Kislovodsk, located in the North Caucasian region of Russia, between the Black and Caspian seas for high altitude training. After that we will return to Turkey for final preparation and friendly matches.

Special SPASIBO! to Zvezda fans. They were fantastic as you can see here:

-
If you have a question for Shek, you can submit it through Twitter at http://twitter.com/ShekBorkowski

I really like Russia!

admin — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 20:05:39 +0000

I really like Russia!
Kaloyan and I arrived in Moscow last Sunday and went straight away to watch Russia vs. Ireland (3:0).
Russia have some very good young players and are in a position to make vast improvements in the next 3 years.
It would not surprise me if Russia becomes a top 5 team in the world soon and stay there for a long time.
The resources are here. The Russian FA is investing in womensâ€™ football infrastructure, and the standard of womenâ€™s football league is high.
My team Zvezda-2005 is located in Perm, which is located about 1,000 km east of Moscow. Weather is cold, and we had about an inch of snow in Perm, but our stadium has a heated artificial surface so training is no problem.

On Thursday, my team Zvezda-2005 played against Ryazan-VDV and won 3:2, but we made it difficult on ourselves.

Zvezda and Russia defender Ksenia Tsybutovich

Went down 2:0 inside the 10 minutes but really got hold of the game after the first 15 and were in control from then on.
My Russia WNT striker Kurochkina scored two well-taken goals, and Russia WNT defender Tsybutovitch added a PK to give us the win.

After the game I met with Zvezdaâ€™s Fan Club members who presented me with a large banner. The fans are fantastic, very passionate and dedicated to the club. Last night I even saw them at our reserve teamâ€™s game.
I very much enjoy coaching in a different football and cultural environment, and this represents an opportunity for growth.
Tuesday we leave for Oslo, Norway where we will play on Wednesday afternoon against Norwegian champions RÃ¸a. They will be a difficult challenge as they have 6-7 very experienced players. I am looking forward to getting my first taste of the UEFA Womenâ€™s Champions League football.
-
If you have a question for Shek, you can submit it through Twitter at http://twitter.com/ShekBorkowski