“We are in full swing, hungry for victories. I’m glad he’s back, but I want to beat him”

After a missed start to the championship, with three failures in the first four stages, Poli Iași is showing signs of a comeback.

Tony da Silva’s students are on a high after the four points obtained with Dinamo and FCSB, and on Friday they aim for a new positive result, in front of Rapid, the only team without a win in the first six rounds.

Tony da Silva, message for Marius Șumudică: “I’m glad he’s back, but I want to beat him on Friday. We are in full swing, hungry for victories”

Iasi climbed to the middle of the ranking after the victory achieved on the field of the FCSB champion, and on Friday evening it can even enter the play-off zone, in case of another victory.

The rapid is suffering, he has not beaten anyone in the first six stages, but the arrival of Marius Șumudica brought enthusiasm back to Giulesti.

The coach of Iași, Tony da Silva, welcomed Șumi’s return to Romanian football, complimented his colleague from the Giulești bench, but told him that he wanted to beat him in his Rapid debut.

“We meet a good team, in which a lot of money has been invested, with top players, who are thinking about the title and that’s why there is a lot of pressure there. Unfortunately for them they are not in the best shape.

But we have to think about what we are doing. I saw that they changed the coach, and mentally, motivationally, it will be a new start, all the players want to show the new coach that they deserve to play. I am glad to see Marius Șumudică again, his career was similar to mine.

And he was in Portugal, he learned the Portuguese language, he respected Portugal a lot, and he is respected there. And I’m trying to do in Romania what he did in Portugal. I try to be respected here too. We are two similar coaches with a revival mentality.

I’m glad he’s back and I wish him all the success in the world to Marius Șumudicăfor all his past in my country, but on Friday I want to beat him. And to have a lot of success after the match in Iași. We are in full swing, hungry for victories”, declared Tony da Silva.

Tony wants to change the mentality in Copou: “We have to think only about victory. I don’t want us to think small”

The Iași technician does not think that the arrival of Şumudica on the bench of Rapid represents a disadvantage for his team. At the same time, Tony conveyed to his students that they must approach the matches with victory.

“I don’t think it’s a disadvantage for us that they changed the coach. It will be 11 on 11 on the court and I think it will be a very nice match. Everyone wants to prove now at Rapid, after the arrival of the new coach, but we also want to prove that we can play football. We have to play with the same mentality, play to win every game. I always said, I want to win. If we can’t, at least one point, but I never tell the boys to come back, keep the result. That’s not my mentality. The boys need to be motivated, not relaxed after the FCSB win. We played two very good matches, we showed that we have the quality to fight any team. When we play together and with soul, we are also a strong team. I know what it’s like to play in a small team, I know what it’s like to be in a big team, I know both mentalities, because I’ve experienced them myself. I don’t want us to think like a small team, I want us to have a big team mentality, to win every duel, every game. If we don’t get this right, we don’t stand a chance,” Tony relayed.

The Politehnica Iași – Rapid Bucharest match, the second of the 7th stage of the Super League, will be played on Friday, August 23, at the “Emil Alexandrescu” Stadium in Copou, starting at 10:00 p.m.