Botev (Plovdiv) started its summer training with a group of 22 players. At 18:30, the head coach of the “canaries“ Stanislav Genchev took his graduates to the club base for the first training session of the new season.
The new addition Bogdan Kostov, as well as the club's junior Vasil Ivanov, who has already signed his first professional contract with the “canaries“, started training with the team.
The head coach Stanislav Genchev announced before the training session that there are three more sure new additions who should join next week. He added that the new players in the team are expected to be ten, and the same number of those leaving will be.
The first training session of the "canaries" was attended by a large number of the club legends of the "yellow-blacks", including Petar Zekhtinski, Marin Bakalov, Zapryan Rakov, Kostadin Kostadinov, Slavcho Horozov and Blagoya Blangev. In addition to them, the session was watched live by the financial benefactor of the club Iliyan Filipov.
The team captain Todor Nedelev took to the field together with his teammates, although he is still on crutches due to the knee surgery he underwent due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament.
The summer training of the "yellow-blacks" will move entirely to the club base in the “Komatevo“ neighborhood, with six tests scheduled during the break. “The Canaries“ will play test matches against Spartak (Pleven), Arda (Kardzhali), Spartak (Varna) and Etar (Veliko Tarnovo), and opponents are being sought for two more sparring matches.
Genchev set the main goal for the "yellow-blacks" for the new season to be the team's qualification for the European club tournaments. The coach gave a briefing to the media at the club base before the start of the team's summer training.
The specialist explained that in addition to the already announced first new summer signing Bogdan Kostov, there are three more sure new players who should join the "yellow-blacks" next week. Genchev specified that two of them are foreigners and one is Bulgarian.
"It is normal for a club like ours to want to play in European tournaments. It is not easy, but we have to do everything possible in terms of selection and preparation to fulfill them. We all want to see Botev in European tournaments, because this is a team with traditions and deserves this", was the coach of the "Canaries" categorically and denied that Georgi Milanov is one of the sure new additions.
"There was a Bulgarian football player with whom we spoke, but at the last moment he preferred another team. Every football player has the right to make decisions about his career", the specialist also said and commented on his relations with the financial benefactor of the club Iliyan Filipov.
"Our relations are professional, I can even say friendly. There is trust between us, which is very important, because trust is the basis of success," explained Botev's coach.
He admitted that the club had an agreement with Martin Georgiev to sign a contract yesterday, but the player did not arrive for the agreed meeting.
Stanislav Genchev announced that a total of ten players will leave the team, and it is expected that the same number of players will be recruited during the summer break.
"I am satisfied with the four players that we consider to be safe. We are still holding many talks. There are positions where it is vital for us to strengthen. I hope that these talks will be concluded as soon as possible, because when a new player arrives, he must adapt to the team and the coach's requirements, prepare mentally and physically. All these things have a great impact and the sooner the selection is completed, the better. The situation is such that Bulgaria is not the most pleasant destination. All the foreign players we talk to are a little suspicious and want to find out how things are," Stanislav Genchev explained.
The "canaries" training will take place entirely at the club base in the "Komatevo" district, with four control matches already arranged and opponents being sought for two more tests.