Tomáš, when we spoke this week, you used the word ‘warrior’ - a word that a lot of the fans use - but there's more than one word for Vlad?
TS: “I see that in every training session that he's one (a warrior). He’s a warrior all the time.
“When we are together in the same team in training, we always win, but when we are against each other, it's, for me, the biggest game of all time because I have a competitor against me.
“If we go to play table tennis or padel, he's also a competitor. He's a winner and wants to win all the time.
“If he doesn't win, he gets angry, which is normal, and the next time he will do his best to win for the team.
“This is the most important thing about him, but I could be here a long time talking about his attributes, and it's not about the character; it's about the quality on the ball.
“I think it's an honour for me to play next to him.”
VC: “I absolutely agree with what Tomáš said because I have the same feeling when I play against him in training. We have the same mentality. We hate losing. I really hate losing.
“When he beats me, I'm so angry. I don't speak with him on the pitch, and then I need to calm down, and in the changing room, we are again best friends.
“It's the mentality we have that brought us here and why we've been such a successful team as we try to spread this mentality to the changing room and everything.”
Thank you so much, guys. It's been special to get to know you. The fans love you. You're both legends, heroes of the Club, and will never be forgotten. Vlad. We love you, mate!
VC: “I just want to say my last thank you to everyone at the Club.
“It's always about the teammates and the coaches, but the people who are not seen in the background, like the media team. They've done an unbelievable job for me and helped me with everything, the people at Player Care and the fans who have been unbelievable with me.
“I don't want to forget the physios, doctors and masseurs. They've done a lot of work for me as well!
“And obviously, the absolute biggest thank you is to my family, to my wife, who supported me over my five years here. To my kids, because without them I wouldn't be the person I am right now, and of course also a big thank you to my brother (Tomáš) here.”