Sandro Schwarz: I was surrounded by extraordinary people at Dynamo and I was happy to head this team

— Congratulations to Spartak on winning the final. The game was intense on both sides. To some extent, Spartak were more lucky. We are disappointed to lose. I would like to thank my team for fighting until the last seconds, as well as throughout the season. We have to keep moving. I think that the positive aspects outweigh the negative ones.

Of course, we would like to win today and thank everyone for the work done, including Andrey Voronin and Ivan Ordets. Unfortunately, we didn’t succeed. If we talk about the penalty, Daniil Fomin took on a lot of responsibility, coming to the spot. We all supported him after the match.

— Why did the team explode only in the second half?

— We started the game quite passively. We have a very young team, which lacks experience in such crucial matches. The poor first half can be explained by this. In the second half, we were able to come from behind, and before Spartak second goal, we organized a good attack in which we could score.

— Do you have a feeling that something broke at Dynamo after Andrey Voronin and Ivan Ordets’ departure?

— We are living in a rather difficult time. I also felt it for myself. But I want to note that all the players and staff have gone through difficult times with heads high. We showed character throughout the season and tried to roll with the punches. We spent the whole season without serious emotional downs, which indicates our character. Of course, the departure of Voronin and Ordets had an impact on our play, because they were an important part of the team.

— It seemed that you fielded Denis Makarov and Nikola Moro too late.

— I don't think so. We had good chances before and created danger in the opponent's box.

— Why did you choose Igor Leshchuk as a starter, and not Anton Shunin?

— I have already said that we have a great goalkeeping group. Leshchuk played all the Cup matches and we decided to field him. If there had been the penalty shootout in this match, we would have had a psychological advantage, because we have already won it recently.

— Everyone is concerned about your future. Was it your last match at Dynamo?

— I always said that we should go through this season to the end all together. But the situation in the world is not easy, and today was my last game in Russia. I can say that I didn't have any agreement with another club. My responsibility was to get to the end with our team.

— What are your impressions of your stay in Russia and Russian football?

— I would like to say about those people who were constantly with me. We lived through a lot of emotional moments, and I was surrounded by extraordinary people during all this time. Yes, there have been some difficulties, and I understood that the team needed my support. We talked a lot with the guys, and I was happy to head this team.