Georgi Milanov returned to the national team for the first time since the time of Yasen Petrov as national coach, or almost two years, and in the victory against Luxembourg (1:0) he started as a starter. Tomorrow in the team's last match against Belarus in the group, he may even go out with the captain's armband. The Bulgarian "lions" welcome the team from the former Soviet Republic tomorrow at 21.45 at the Vasil Levski National Stadium, and currently have 8 points. Belarusians are 3rd with 6, and Northern Ireland leads with 10.
"Losing to Northern Ireland wasn't nice, but that's life. This camp was extremely important for us to show another face. I haven't been to the previous one, but I can imagine how all the players felt after the loss. The first game was important because there was tension. If we had lost, we would have been in last place. The tension took its toll especially in the second half as we tried to keep the score. I hope this win will give us more self-confidence and confidence for tomorrow's match, because it is extremely important for the whole nation. If we win tomorrow, we might have a good chance to top the group. Luxembourg is a strong team and we hope they beat Northern Ireland.
Asked how he sees the national team now, two years after his last match – at a 0-0 draw in Georgia in 2022, he said: "A lot of young guys I see in the team. I like to train with young players, it was the same in Levski. I find the situation to be good. I hope that each of us will do our best in this extremely important meeting and that we will win.
For the first time in almost three years Bulgaria will be without its leader and team captain Kiril Despodov. Milanov also said what the mood is with this lack, and even more so at the moment, Despodov is the person who has scored the most goals from the current lineup – 15.
"Kyril is an established leader with a lot of goals and assists. He is the captain of the team, but I think that the team has always been the most important thing. And I think that tomorrow the collective will be the leader. I hope we will please the audience, no matter how many spectators come to the "Vasil Levski" National Stadium.
Immediately after the press conference, the team went out for their official practice. Expectations are that there will be no more than two changes in the starting line-up, one of which is related to Despodov's punishment, and the other to Alexander Kolev, who does not feel 100 percent ready.