He closely supervised the events at the training camp in Benidorm alongside Adolf Šádek. MARTIN DELLENBACH, a member of the board of directors and co-owner of the club, also found time to meet with the Czech media during his stay in Spain and we also bring you all the important things he talked about. He reviewed his six months in Viktoria, outlined his plans for the future and sent a big praise to the fans.

Half a year has passed since you joined Viktoria. How do you evaluate this period?

Basically, I have to say at the outset that from our point of view we are happy that we went for it! Of course, at the beginning it´s hard to get to know all the things, after all you´ve only looked at them from the outside. But now we know that there are great things to build on and move forward step by step. But the foundation is great, I like the way we work here - the mentality of all the people, the club DNA, the hard work, the desire to be the best. That´s exactly what we need. Plus I have to give credit to the Victorian fans for the way they support the club and the atmosphere they can create at games. I would also like to invite everyone to the start of the spring part of the season, which we have called Pilsen Spring! We are all looking forward to seeing it all kick off again and to meet again at the Doosan Arena.

And when we look at the sports results?

It´s all about development. We have managed to reduce the age average of the team by some three years, yet the sports results have remained plus or minus at the same level. We are playing in the European Cups, in the league I think everything is OK. It´s hard to change something that works. Still, we should keep trying to move forward. That´s what we are doing together with Adolf Šadek and other people. So I´ll sum it up: I´m satisfied.

What did you think of the fall run in the European Conference League?

It was perfect, great results! Again, let´s face it, we weren´t always the better team in every passage of the game, but in the end we managed to be the only club to win everything in the group. For me, that´s the best signal and message both externally and internally to the players. They saw that if they give it their all, go all out, everything can be done! And our excellent fans must be happy about that too, that´s important for us too.

How far can you go in the UECL, what is your dream?

Let´s be honest. We always have to go on the pitch with the idea that we want to win. That´s the basic premise. We want to try to go as far as possible, otherwise it wouldn´t even make sense. Of course, we´ll also wait for the draw and see what kind of opponent it brings.

What other goals are set for the spring part?

We know how important the home cup is for us. It´s an interesting journey where we want to succeed. Even in the league we have to set ourselves the task of finishing as high as possible. To get to the cups, to be in the top 3, that has to be our minimum goal. We have the potential, a good squad, everyone at the club must say at the end that they did their best to succeed. And if you do that, the result usually can´t be bad. But we are also looking at the future, we are already thinking with an eye towards the summer, when probably, if we get in, the qualifiers will be waiting for us again and you don´t have much time there. Even the new players who have come in now, we are building in with that vision so that we are ready.

You talk about a process of rejuvenation and development.

We do football a little bit differently than others and we don´t really look at others that much. We look at ourselves. And we have a clear idea of what we want our squad to look like. It should be made up of three basic pillars.

Can you describe them?

The first pillar are players who go through our academy and make it to the first team. They have a relationship with the region, they identify with it and with the club. And this should also be the goal for talents from other regions. So that they want to come to us. Not for the money, but for the chance to make it. Many clubs have great academies, they work with players for years, but then they practically have no chance to make it in the first team, there is no room for them, the global stars have that.

What is the second pillar?

Players, let´s say between 22 and 26 years old, who have the potential to move to a big club in the top 5 leagues. And we want to help them to do that by progressive development. For example, Pavel Bucha got a great offer from MLS. And even a player from our own academy can get into this category.

And the third pillar?

Extremely important players, I want to stress that. We´re talking about the 26-34 age range. They have something under their belt, they have played a lot of tough games, they are experienced and they are ready to pass on that experience to younger players, to guide them, to mentor them. Maybe someone thinks, I´ll come and play only with the young ones. But you can´t. You need older, experienced players to guide you not only on the field, but also in the locker room, in attitude, in setting values. For us, it´s Hejda, Kopic, Havel, Chorý and others. Our task is to have a well-balanced squad, not too young, not too old, not too many with potential. If you can do that, you can set the highest goals.

What are those long-term goals for Viktoria?

We want to play for the title every year, to be at the top of the table. We want to play in Europe every year. And for that you need a well-balanced squad.

Is the goal to play for the title?

Yes, all the time. But you can´t say: let´s increase the budget five times and win the title, it doesn´t work like that. We want to play at the top and keep developing and moving players. Maybe I´ll put it a bit provocatively: I´m not just going to go and buy ten 30-year-old ready-made players and think: now I´m going to win it! But what happens next year? We want to be economically stable, have a vision and help players on their way. If the title doesn´t happen but all the other things are done, it can happen. To me, it´s better than making the title in one season but having nothing for the next three years. That´s not our vision of how the club should operate.

Of course, the fans are also interested in the economic situation of the club.

We´re stable. We have clear financial lines and we are not under any pressure. That should remain the goal for the future. We will survive if we don´t get into the Champions League, the Europa League...but there is always the potential to play there in the medium term. It´s our goal, our dream.

What is the strength of the Czech top flight in your eyes?

I can compare it with the Austrian Bundesliga, for example. The Czech league is very demanding physically, based on athletic parameters. We like that very much and it fits into our construct. Within our academy we try to educate players with our know-how technically, when you combine all that with the athletic demandingness, then you educate players who are able to make it in the top 5 leagues. When I look at the value of our players in Viktorka, they are benchmarked in that respect, top level.

How do you perceive the rivalry with Sparta and Slavia?

It won´t change, it will always be the same. Economically, they are different than us, but they trust and go their way, we trust and go our way. Everybody starts from their own, does their best and at the end you look at where they ended up. After all, Viktoria were not the strongest economically in the past few years, yet they won six titles and were in the Champions League four times. You just work with what you have to the absolute maximum. Otherwise, about the rivalry. It´s good for everyone, for the players, for the fans, it´s part of it. I´m happy when Sparta and Slavia do well and advance in Europe, we collect points together for the coefficient, we bring money to Czech football, we build its image. We just have to support each other here. And in the league? There we will each do our best.

During the winter break, there was a lot of talk about Rafiu Durosinmi´s transfer to Frankfurt. Is it a big disappointment for you that it didn´t happen even considering the possible financial amount?

No. Maybe I look at it a little differently and I´ll try to explain. For me it´s important to do the best for the players, the players are our biggest asset, it has to be good for the players. Rafiu was injured and of course it´s sad for him, that´s logical. But he´s only 21! We spoke to him and explained to him that nothing is wrong. Now you have to do everything you can to be healthy again and get back to normal, play and score goals again. You just have to turn everything in a positive direction. And the big transfer? That could come in a year or two, there´s no rush at his age.

And the financial side?

That´s an advantage compared to a year ago, for example. We´re not under any pressure. Yes, it would be great if the transfer works out, after all, we are talking about wanting to make a transfer to a top 5 league, which hasn´t happened so much in the past and the Bundesliga was ideal in our opinion. Maybe this is where the slightly different approach we have shows. Isn´t it? It doesn´t matter. There is no economic pressure, we don´t have to collapse. He´s a young kid, he´s got everything in front of him. This is how we work with it.

In the summer you talked about the connection and cooperation between the clubs in Austria and Viktoria. How is this going?

Look, we´re six months in. This is something for the longer term, maybe two or three years. But the first things have already been done. We have always taken the two best players of a given category from our Austrian academy and given them a four-day internship in Viktoria. They saw the environment, they trained with their category for four days. And we´ll definitely pick someone like that for the first team.

Moreover, since January, a coach from Austria has been working in the academy in Pilsen on a permanent basis. He works with local coaches and I think it works very well for both sides. But the basic principle will remain that the Austrian coaches will do their job in Austria and the Czech coaches in Pilsen. We will add structure, order, coordination and cooperation and we want to make it interesting for all talents.

How specifically?

Is the transition to the first team in Pilsen too difficult for you? Come to Lafnitz for six months, show yourself in the second Bundesliga and then you can come back and your chances of making it big will be higher. We are able to offer every player our entire pyramid from the fourth Austrian league, through the third Czech league, the second and first Bundesliga to the European Cups in Plzeň. It´s up to him how far he can go with his work. Percy van Lierop and I are in Pilsen every week for two days, we are working on it and you will see the results in two or three years. It´s not immediate, it´s not possible (laughs).

How do you find working with Adolf Šádek?

Great! I feel like we´ve known each other for twenty years. And we work very well together. He´s one of the best, maybe the best manager in the Czech Republic and I have no doubt that he would be in other countries as well. He knows what he´s doing and I can concentrate on the areas where we can move forward...I have time to look at things a little bit more distantly than if I was in the thick of things every day like he is. He´s doing football 24 hours a day, and we´re the same in that, dealing with things morning, evening or night, it doesn´t matter - we´re still full on! We complement each other, we enjoy it and we move forward together.

Head coach Miroslav Koubek has a contract with the club until the summer. Have you already settled it with him?

Míra Koubek is doing a great job! He has totally identified with what we wanted, with our vision, together with his implementation team. He´s very motivated. I´m a huge fan of experienced people like him. I might ask him for his opinion and he´ll say he´s been through this situation 10 times and it won´t work and he´s right. He´s lived it, he knows what´s right. Experts like that are extremely important for the club and it´s good to be able to use them. In addition, I would mention one more important thing. Mr. Koubek is extremely open to new things, he wants to learn and is interested in them all the time. I imagine he will help us in the medium term in various ways. Otherwise, on your question about the contract. We agreed to meet during the spring and evaluate all the factors. How the coach feels will also be important. Right now, neither he nor we may be under any stress. We´re gonna sit down and talk it through.

Finally, a question about the interesting transfer of Jindřich Stanek to Slavia. How did you see it?

This is an optimal example of a transfer that makes sense for everyone. Slavia got the goalkeeper they wanted, the national team player. The player got a chance for a change, a next step, a new challenge, which he needed and wanted. Well, regardless of the financial aspect, we got two youth national team players that we probably wouldn´t have gotten under normal circumstances. We brought in young players, which fits our system. All three parties are happy, that´s how it should work.