GOLDEN DREAMS OF EMRELI

It is no secret that one of the problems of Azerbaijani football is the lack of its own legionnaires. Just a few months ago, famous Azerbaijani footballer Mahir Emreli accepted an invitation from one of the Polish clubs and began to represent Azerbaijan abroad. Emreli's debut began well. He has already scored important goals for Legia in the Polish Championship and the Polish Cup, and also made a significant contribution to his club getting qualified for the group stage of the UEFA Europa League.

We asked the player of Legia and the Azerbaijani national team Mahir EMRELI a few questions about his life in Poland.

"Your career at Legia began successfully. With ten goals scored, you are the club's scorer. Was it unexpected?"

"It is wrong to plan and predict in football. I believed in myself from day one. I’ll try to keep this faith till the end. I am glad that I was able to score goals and be useful to the team."

"Perhaps, you have no problems communicating with the team, since you speak English. In general, are there any difficulties with getting accustomed to the Polish way of living?"

"There were some difficulties with city life. Warsaw is a huge city and there are a lot of traffic jams there. That’s why I often do not even leave home. I don't want to waste time on traffic jams. In general, I had no particular problems. Poles have similarities with us. They’re very responsive and emotional."

"Do you follow the progress of your former club Garabagh? What are your impressions?"

"Garabagh is a club where the system and manner of playing do not change even when players change. Head coach Gurban Gurbanov is always looking for footballers who meet this scheme. I can't compare the current line-up with the previous ones. I see that this season the club has added a few very high-quality players. I wish the team every success in the upcoming season. I believe that the guys will hit high scores in the UEFA Conference League and will successfully perform in the national championship and Cup of Azerbaijan."

"What place could Garabagh take if they played at the Polish championship?"

"It is a difficult question. They would compete for a high place definitely. The Polish championship is not an easy competition at all. It is followed more than the Azerbaijani league. Extra Class (the highest league of the Polish football championship) is improved constantly, with each transfer window several players move to the best leagues at once. That’s why it is more prestigious than the Azerbaijani championship. It is like an exhibition visited by potential buyers interested in buying new players. European managers periodically monitor the players in the Polish championship."

"Perhaps the main reason why chose Legia was your intention to get the attention of clubs from stronger leagues..."

“Yes, but only one of the reasons why I joined Legia. I signed a contract with a Polish club to achieve a higher level. I analysed other options with people close to me and even with the head coach of Garabagh. We came to the conclusion that Legia was more acceptable to us. The team dominates every game, creates a lot of scoring situations. And this is extremely important for me as a forward.”

"Did you have an option to transfer to another club before you gave affirmative to Legia?"

"I can only say that a few clubs from Belgium, Austria, and Portugal were seriously interested."

"Every forward dreams of becoming the top scorer of the championship. Perhaps, you also want to become a high scorer in Poland..."

"I dream of becoming the champion of Poland. If I become a scorer of Extra-Class and am chosen as the best footballer, but my team fails to win the title, then individual awards do not matter. Ultimately, we all will fail. My dream is to get the gold medal of the championship, not awards for individual achievements."

"What do you think about your opponents in the Europa League?"

"Looking at the teams in the group, I thought that we had already moved to the classification stage of the Champions League. Very strong rivals indeed. Such a group could have formed in the Champions League. One of the goals of every footballer is to play against strong opponents. We have very strong players, hence we can gain experience and develop in such matches."

"They love you very much in Poland. All social pages of Legia share your photos. Some even call you MaHEROvski."

"Yes, they share the photos where I score goals or do my training. Everyone treats me very warmly. I have a very good relationship with the head coach and the players. I am friendly with the ordinary employees of the club as well. But I can't answer your question in detail. I’d like to thank them for sharing my photos, for their attention. I will do my best to deserve their attention."

"It seems that you are playing better than in Garabakh and the national team. Why?"

"The national team of Azerbaijan and Legia are different. These are teams with different playing manners. I know that I can't play well in the national team. I have not been able to score for a long time. I can’t play the way I want. I try to do my best. But I cannot say how much I am successful. But I hear some comments here and there and I would like to clarify this. They think that when I play for the national team I try to take care of myself, thinking of playing for Legia. I categorically object this. The national team is our pride and every footballer dreams of playing for it. It is a great honour to wear this uniform. I try to do my best."

"Do you keep in touch with your former coach Gurban Gurbanov after leaving for Poland?"

"We contact him after each game. We talked after the victories of Legia, my goals scored for the team, victories of Garabagh, the team’s advance to the League of Conferences. Gurban Gurbanov congratulates me on my successes and gives advice. He always advises, he says not to stop where I am presently. He hopes to see more goals scored by me and wishes that I could continue to play well. He says that I should focus on my performance. He says that I should think about football today and tomorrow. I constantly feel his support. I don’t say these words because I am in the Legia. If I play for the top clubs of my dreams, I will always need advice and moral support from Gurban Gurbanov."

"How do you spend your free time in Poland?"

"Warsaw is a huge city. I live there with my sister. When we have free time, we go out for a walk in the city, visit somewhere, have lunch together. But when I am training, everything is completely different. Sometimes we walk with our teammates. There are very long streets in Warsaw, hence traffic jams are a frequent thing. Sometimes I simply don’t want to leave home. I try to return home immediately after training. Since we train in the morning, I have to get up at 8 am. The road to the training base takes about 45 minutes. The actual training starts at 11 am. Breakfast, medical tests and examinations take some time. This is how I spend my days there."

"Thank you for the interview."

"Thank you for your attention."