“The good news is that he doesn’t need to be prepared morally. Uncharacteristic of his years, Artur has maturity. I would like to add that in this situation it is simple because we have two other goalkeepers who are completely team players and maintain the atmosphere, support and understand the situations seriousness. That’s why it’s very easy to work,” said Artūrs Irbe about the decision to entrust the game against Kazakhstan to Artūrs Shilov.
“You can clear your head a little, because you don’t have to skate. You don’t have to face the usual shots, you can save a little bit of strength,” Irbe counted the pros of playing for the second day in a row from the goalkeeper’s perspective.
“The second game is for both teams. Everything depends on the character. You have to be smart enough to prepare for the game and be fresh. Sleeping, eating, turning the wheel, stretching. Everyone has to know their body to be able to prepare it as close to 100%. That’s the difference between perfect game and very good – even I can’t see and determine that. I can say from my experience – if I was a kilogram too much, then I had a huge power, but a little bit lacking in sharpness, if I was a kilogram too little, then I had a very good sharpness , but no longer had that power.”
Yesterday, Kazakhstan defeated Slovakia 4-3 in the bullpen, and Andrei Shutov became the main hero, saving 48 of 51 shots. 25-year-old Shutov has started four out of five games and has saved 90.2% of his shots.
“They have an interesting goalkeeper, extremely unusual. I don’t remember seeing such a free goalkeeper. Maybe in 1983, 1984, when I saw one Polish goalkeeper. That Polish goalkeeper looked around more at one woman than at the game during the game. From his I remember it from my youth, childhood, because I watched the goalkeepers a lot. I remember how I worked. And I saw that that guy was interested in what would happen after the game,” laughed Irbe.
“He doesn’t look at the stands at all, but he dances during the musical break, when he needs to force the puck, then he almost gets it back. You can expect everything from him. A very talented guy, but he has to pull himself together. When he pulls himself together, he can do wonders, ” concluded the goalkeeping coach of the Latvian national team.
Kazakhstan is the youngest team in the World Cup. If last year there were 11 hockey players with passports from other countries, this time there are none. This did not prevent the Kazakhs from beating not only Slovakia, but also Norway in the bullpen.
“They are different from the Kazakh teams we have seen before – without legionnaires. I think that is why they have a stronger collective. You can feel it both from their side and from the small but colorful group of fans. The team is confident. They have nothing to lose, but they can gain more respect. No easy game is expected,” warned Irbe.
“The Kazakh team knows its strengths. Their majority and counterattacks are very dangerous, they play quite organized. It will be a fierce game, it will not be easy, our character will be tested again,” said Irbe.
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2023-05-20 07:49:00
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