Víctor Mongil (Laguna de Duero, Valladolid, 28 years old) knows Georgian football very well and his style of play, it is not for nothing that he is central to Dinamo Tbilisi, the most important club in the country for three seasons. In this team, he has won the league twice since arriving in Georgia in January 2019, led by Xisco Muñoz. Currently, he shares a dressing room with another Spaniard: Carlos Castro. Mongil, who coincided with Koke and Morata in the lower categories of the Spanish National Team, knows what the block led by Luis Enrique is going to face this afternoon.
From your experience in Georgian football, what would you say is your style of play?
They are based on physical rigor, winning all the divided balls, although in the years that I have been here, I have noticed that perhaps they lack a certain tactical rigor. It shows in the order of the team, the transitions or the tilts. Those tactical aspects cost them a bit more. Although there is individual talent, as there can be in any country.
In these three seasons that he has played in the Georgian league, he has seen football evolve in this country.
Little by little it is believed that he can reach a European, in recent years he is realizing that more and more Georgian players are leaving to different European teams and these generations that are succeeding abroad, bring that experience to the National Team and I would not be surprised that in a few years Georgia will play a Eurocup. They sign players who have played in important teams and in powerful leagues, so that you can contribute, in my case, in addition to the enthusiasm and desire, I can help with my experience and my strengths that they do not have.
Now there are two Spaniards at Dinamo, but how did the possibility of coming to play in Georgia come about?
Xisco did good numbers as a player and as a coach here at Dinamo. And he was the one who asked me to come here and we managed to be champions. Now Spaniards pass through Dinamo, Xisco Muñoz was the first and did such a good job and put a level so high that now those of us who are here are highly valued. In my case, things are not going wrong.
He has two league titles with Dinamo Tbilisi, but in between winning an Indian Supeliga with Atletico Kolkata …
Xisco was not renewed at Dinamo and then we Spaniards fell like dominoes. I went to India, where I had a good experience. We were also champions in a team in which there were also several Spaniards like Mandi, with experience in several Spanish teams, Javi Hernández, Agus, I faced him in a promotion playoff to First Division, and Edu García, who had left the quarry. from Zaragoza.
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Based on your experience, with which Spanish category would you compare the football of Georgia and India?
Soccer in Georgia could be compared to the Second Division, lower middle zone. India is more difficult, it depends on the Indian players. If in Georgia they lack tactical rigor, in India they may want to do a control or hit the ball and they score an own goal for me. Playing there is living an exotic experience, I recommend it to any player who can live such an experience. People cheer you, for them you are like a star and they make you feel very special. It was three months alone, but very beautiful. Very intense.
How was your return to Dinamo Tbilisi?
The happy pandemic arrived and I was considering various options. Dinamo Tbilisi had fallen in the Champions League qualifier, they fired their existing coach and the club turned to Xisco again. Then he called me again and said: “We are going back to Tbilisi and we get the second one in a row” and I replied: “Let's go.”
Are you planning to stay in Georgia for a long time?
This year I had doubts, I wanted to bet on the academy, it is one of the strongest in the country and in the Caucasus area and I did not know if the answer was going to be the good one. Dinamo Tbilisi is like Madrid and Barcelona, the responsibility is to win and win, there is no other way and I did not know if the team would be able to respond. In preseason he gave me good feelings, the coach had clear ideas and the club wanted him to continue. We won the Super Cup and now we are going to a point from the leader. At the moment, I am content and happy here. It is a welcoming country and they make it very easy for you in the city and at the club.
What is the football fan like in Georgia?
The fans are very fond of, at club level the attendance has dropped. A few years ago, Dinamo Tbilisi gave 70 percent of the national team's players and now the players that stand out are going to play in Ukraine, Greece, Turkey and this has been noticed in the field attendance. Now, many internationals have passed through Dinamo Tbilisi, but in the Georgia national team there are none who currently play in the team.
Have you had offers to play again in Spain?
I would love to, it is a thorn in me. I have had options to return to Spain. There are loose ends, none in the First Division, but in some things the Second Division still lacks. The level of the Segunda de España is one of the strongest, but I am not going to the talent if not to the structure. It would need to grow to different levels in the style of the English second division.
There is talk of this Georgia-Spain match in the Dinamo Tbilisi dressing room.
Yes, we talked in the locker room and they remind me a lot that in a friendly Georgia won 0-1 against Spain and I am already looking forward to the match and Spain to win. In addition, in an important match like this to qualify for a World Cup and that they keep the memory of this match and not with the victory of the friendly.
What has surprised you about Georgia in the years you have been here?
As you walk through this city, you can see buildings that look like they are going to fall. A few years ago they were at war with Russia and it is seen that the city is coming out little by little. What most caught my attention are the cars. You see many that are destroyed that they lack the bumper, they go without mirrors, but they handle them without problems. His driving style also caught my attention. On the way to training, every other day you get a scare.