Viktar Hancharenka: “I expect BATE to play not less successfully next year”

Play of BATE football club of Barysau in the UEFA Champions League can be considered a main positive event of 2008.

Barysau’s club managed to get to the Champions League group stage, having left such serious competitors as Belgium Anderlecht and Bulgarian Levski on the sidelines. BATE didn’t shame itself in matches against Real Madrid, Juventus Turin and Zenit St. Petersburg.

The Charter’97 press center asked BATE’s couch Viktar Hancharenka to summarize the events of 2008.

– Many remarkable events were noticed in Belarusian sport. These are Olympic gold medal (and not only gold ones), success in football – our rather good performance in UEFA Champions League and play of our youth teams. It was a very successful season for BATE taking into account it was a start for this composition of the team. It was the first time when we had achieved such a high level and we demonstrated a rather confident play. Of course, participation in the Champions League is a great breakthrough for us. We are happy to have gained this, but it makes us work even harder.

Our performance evoked a wide response in Belarus, many people meet us in streets, wish success and thank. Our matches are widely covered in sporting world. I am happy if our play gave positive emotions to anyone. I expect BATE to play not less successfully next year. We’d like to make a lodgement on this level, – Viktar Hancharenka told in an interview to the Charter’97 press center.