Septemvri's coach Nikolay Mitov gave a special interview to Gong.bg during the capital team's training camp in Turkey, in which the specialist spoke about the team's development and goals, the new signings, the style of play, football in Bulgaria, as well as the situation in Levski.
"We played a test, trained for a week, the mood is work. Every day we have to build and clean things up to be ready. The boys are in a great mood, every camp is work. The boys are very young and need to develop. Everyone is happy with the conditions and the pitches here. A lot has happened on the transfer market, we were forced to do it. It is difficult to make deals in the winter. We needed someone like Galin Ivanov - with experience, having played in the national team. We didn't have such a player. Only Assen Chandarov has more experience. We needed such a Bulgarian player, he is needed for the young players. I hope Galin with his professionalism will help the team stay in the group and the players develop", he began.
"Galin Ivanov is a very hardworking player. That's why he has been at this level for so many years. He can still give to Bulgarian football and especially help these players grow. I love working with young players, this is the future of Bulgaria. We have good young players. I always try to impose such players. This is the best thing for Bulgarian football. But if you do it within 1-2 months, the coach leaves. There is no patience for this. They want young, but also quick results. Time must be given. In September, imposing young players has been going on since the club was founded. There have been declines, you enter, you are relegated, there is no way you can avoid going through this stage. The important thing is for the team to stay in the group. At some point, these young players will go to bigger clubs and they will make money for Septemvri. Few teams do like us, maybe Slavia and that's where it ends," continued the specialist.
"Foreigners come who are paid less and want a stage to show themselves abroad. They are also looking for results, and there is no patience. If we want Bulgarian football to go up, we must have a limit for foreigners. The youth of 4-5 generations have not bad football players. I don't know how exactly and it's not my business, but there should be limits. What can you say about Ludogorets? The guy there gives a lot of money for the Champions League, but we are talking about the Bulgarian championship. The state must help football. We look at what other countries like Hungary are doing. We need a lot of quality pitches, one in Plovdiv is not enough, we need 10 of them. Sport is the face of a country. When you go somewhere, what do they ask about Bulgaria? Stoichkov, Stefka Kostadinova, Nassar. They always ask about that - sports. In Turkey, there is a school near Izmir - there are 30 training fields. We don't have that much in common in Bulgaria. There's no way it can be. At one time, there was everything," added Mitov.
"All the matches in which we beat the top teams, Septemvri grew as a team, and mostly mentally. If you can resist, you have to have a better mentality against teams from our league. Ludogorets stands out above everyone. Then there are 3-4 teams with equal strength. Then another 4-5 with equal strength and the rest. There is a difference and I want other teams to be competition for Ludogorets. The forces are equal, but with certain teams. The president is always close to our team. There are no problems, it's normal when the president is here. Nothing stands out," he commented.
"We are used to this about the stadium. There is an improvement, in previous years with no better pitches they played in their stadiums. Everything possible is being done to play at Dragalevtsi. This is our stadium and we train there. It is a popular team and young guys play, and people will come and the atmosphere will be more football-like if we compete there," said the Septemvri coach.
"It is normal for me to follow Levski and see what is happening. I cannot give assessments, I have no right to do so. I can only speak about Septemvri. These coaching changes are not pleasant, but it is part of our profession. In Bulgaria, when hiring a coach, you have to know what you want and what style he professes. Levski made a mistake there. I don't divide between foreigners and Bulgarians, but it's not normal to win five games in a row, continue for the Cup and be replaced. It wasn't the right time for the shake-up", he shared.
"For 2025, I wish for myself and everyone around me to be healthy on a personal level. On a professional level - for the players to be healthy and for the team to remain in the elite of Bulgarian football", concluded Nikolay Mitov.