As Slovakia compete for a place at the 2018 FIFA World Cup™, one of their players has already made it to Russia. During the summer, attacking midfielder Robert Mak moved from PAOK in Greece to Zenit Saint Petersburg and now, he is determined to get himself an invite to the country in 2018 alongside his team-mates in the national side. Judging by Slovakia's 3-0 victory in qualifying against Scotland recently, a game in which Mak scored twice and supplied an assist, he is on the right track.
"It's very different to what I was used to in Greece, especially the weather!" Mak admitted in an interview with FIFA.com. "Zenit are a successful club that is aiming high in the league and in Europe. We have a great squad and a talented head coach. It's a big step forward for me. I'll try to help the team in any way I can, especially with goals and assists. We've made a good start in the Russian championship and the Europa League; now we want to continue our winning streak in both tournaments.
"There's a pretty big difference between Greece and Russia," the 25-year-old continued, "but the manager (Zenit head coach Mircea Lucescu) has given me enough time to adapt. I hope he's happy with the way I play. I think I can be of use to Zenit and I hope to achieve a lot of success at this club."
Mak is the fourth player from Slovakia to represent the Blue-White-Sky Blues, following in the footsteps of goalkeeper Kamil Contofalsky and defenders Martin Skrtel and Tomas Hubocan. And he was pleasantly surprised to hear that he has already overtaken Skrtel's haul of five goals for the club.
"I'll boast to him when we're on international duty together!" Mak laughed. "It's not a surprise, as we have different roles. My job is to score goals and Martin's is to stop them, but it's nice to hear anyway.
"Of course, I know the guys from Slovakia who used to play for Zenit. Tomas Hubocan gave me loads of advice when I joined and helped me find my feet in Saint Petersburg. Everyone has said it's an amazing city and I've only heard good things about the club from them."
Aiming for top spot
Mak was part of the Slovakia squad at UEFA EURO 2016, helping his team to a 2-1 win against Russia that earned them passage to the Round of 16 and where he came face-to-face with his future competitors for starting positions at Zenit: Oleg Shatov and Aleksandr Kokorin.
"I've got great memories from that game," Mak smiled. "We won and it ensured we qualified from the group. Shatov and Kokorin are excellent footballers and my task is doubly complicated seeing as Russian teams can't field more than six foreign players in the domestic league. That's why I didn't agree to the move straight away, but after carefully thinking it through, I realised that I've got the ability to play in the starting XI and not sit on the bench. The competition is tough, but that's what I wanted."
Before the start of the World Cup qualifying cycle, Mak had scored seven goals for his country. Having been drawn into a group with England, Slovenia, Scotland, Lithuania and Malta, the Falcons made the worst possible start with two straight defeats. Since then, the team has begun to make up on lost ground thanks to Mak's key influence.
"We were unlucky twice," he said. "We conceded in the 95th minute against England and it was a balanced contest against Slovenia, but ultimately the fact they were playing at home paid off. We couldn't afford any more slip-ups against Scotland. We knew that if we lost, our chances would practically be gone. However, we pulled ourselves together, won 3-0 and showed that Slovakia are as good as before. I'm delighted I scored two goals, but the main thing is that we got the three points. Now we need a win against Lithuania and we'll be right back in the mix.
"England are the favourites, but we can take second place and get into the play-offs, plus you never know in football – maybe we could even fight for first? Qualifying for the World Cup in Russia will be harder than getting to the EURO in France; back then we were able to qualify from second place, but we'll give it our best shot."
Mak did not make a typical start to his career. Born in Bratislava, he began playing football in his home country but was then picked up by Manchester City's academy, where he spent nearly six years before signing his first senior contract with FC Nuremberg. Mak decided to go to England hardly knowing the language at all.
"I was about 15-years-old," Mak remembered. "I hadn't even finished school! It was difficult for my parents to let me go, but a year later they moved to Manchester as well. It was very difficult at the start, but now I understand it was the best decision of my life. I became the player I am thanks to Manchester City's academy; I learned a lot there. Their set-up for playing football is incomparable with what you find in Slovakia. It was an experience, I got through it and I'm very happy about that. I would never had learned everything I did there had I stayed at home."
"One of the best stadiums in the world"
At his new club in Russia, everyone in the squad is waiting with bated breath for the opening of the new 68,000-seater stadium in Saint Petersburg, which will host matches at the FIFA Confederations Cup 2017 and the World Cup a year later.
"I haven't been to the stadium yet but I'm watching construction from the outside because I live literally five minutes away," Mak revealed. "Everyone is saying it will be one of the best stadiums in the world. It really does look magnificent.
"I think Russia 2018 will be fantastic and everyone will be happy," the Slovakian star concluded. "Great stadiums are being constructed and some have already been built. Matches are going ahead in beautiful cities. It will be a great party and I really want Slovakia to be there. I hope we're able to achieve this.
About conditions in St. Pete
It's all good here, at the Gazprom training centre the pitches are good, so there's no problems. It is a very stable football club and this is the key to successful performance. In modern sport and specifically in football, it is very difficult to achieve good results if you do not have stable financial support. Zenit have been sponsored by Gazprom in recent years, they are a strong organisation with a global reputation. If you look at the statistics, then almost all of the club's major successes have come under the umbrella of Gazprom. A player can play with confidence when you know that your team will not have any financial difficulties and no problems with your salary. It's good to go out on to the pitch with a clear head and be able to concentrate on your work.
Check out the original interview on FIFA.com
