- The team's summer preparations have arrived near the finish line, you will start the new league season at the home of ZTE on Saturday. How do you rate the past few weeks in terms of your preparation?

I think we did quality work during the preparation period. We were able to train in great conditions here as well, and the training camp in Bukfurdo was also impeccable. We played against both domestic and international teams and although there were games that didn’t go as planned, I think we were able to learn from our mistakes and look forward to the start of the new season. One of the important tasks of the training camp was to get in good shape. Obviously, there were matches when we went out on to the pitch with a more serious physical exertion before that, which is why our legs weren’t always fresh. But I always say that it is not in the preparation matches that you have to perform well, but in the competitive matches. Let's not forget that we are facing a long season, we plan that in addition to the championship and the Hungarian Cup, there will also be many Europa League matches ahead of us, so it is important that all members of the squad are in excellent fitness. In addition to physical training, another important task of the preparation period was to get used to the tactical ideas that the new head coach had developed for the team. The manager wants to give us more freedom in the attacking game, he puts a lot of emphasis on being in possession as much as possible and therefore we can create many situations, which we then have to convert to goals. In my opinion, we need to refine these in the next few days, many times the final pass was still missing, but I feel that the team is evolving day by day. And it is very encouraging that although we have been working with Gabor Marton for only three weeks, we have already managed to find a common denominator with him, we know what he expects from us in attack and also in defence. The main focus will be on us dominating every match.

- This was the first time you were at a training camp when you were the team captain. How different was this training camp in Bukfurdo than the previous training camps in your career, either at home or abroad?

Fortunately the core of the team have been together for a long time now - Istvan Kovacs, Stopira, Adam Kovacsik, Mate Patkai, Loic Nego -, I was able to discuss many things with them during the ten days we were together in Bukfurdo. I guess I’m not telling you a secret that every professional football team has a policy that has a lot of items, from dressing room rules, training sessions, and matches. One of the important and new responsibilities in training camp as a team captain was to develop this policy. I’m proud to have inherited the captain’s armband from an excellent footballer like Roland Juhasz, who had developed a great policy in previous years, so I didn’t have to change it too much. Two things I think are important in the dressing room of a football team: discipline and a good feeling. I think you can find both of these in Vidi’s dressing room. 

- How hard is it for you to go on a 10-day training camp these days, since you already have three children, obviously they miss you and you miss them and your wife, Nori has even more responsibilities at home?

Indeed, there are several tasks for her at this time, but she does them great, I am very lucky because Nori is not only a wonderful wife, but I could not wish for a better mother for my children either. It is very difficult for me to break away from my family for such a long time, especially since two of the three children are already big. Tijana, for example, cried a lot when I left, luckily Marko, my middle child, understood this situation better, as he already plays football here in Vidi, so he is very interested in the world of football. Even during the training camp, I was asked every day what the training sessions were like, how the matches were successful, but before the start, for example, he also helped me to pack my bag. Nia, my youngest child, is now a year and a half old, so still really small, but he also senses when I’m away for a long time. 

- How accustomed are the children to being home again, as they have spent most of their lives abroad, in Poland and in America? Do they consider Szekesfehervar as their home?

I can proudly say yes. It is true that in their lives they have lived abroad so far more than at home, but fortunately they managed to consider Szekesfehervar as their home very quickly. For me, there was no question for a minute that if I finished my career abroad, Szekesfehervar would be the city we would return to. And we were consciously prepared for that. Tijana and Marko were born here, it is not only their home but also their hometown. When we lived in Warsaw or Chicago, we talked about Szekesfehervar many times, we looked at a lot of pictures and videos taken there, the children were aware of which city we would return to.

-Speaking of the training camp, please allow us to take a look behind the scenes, as fans are mostly informed about what training work they have done in the training camp and what matches you have played, but there is less talk about how you spend your free time. Who is your room mate? How did the training camp in Bukfurdo go when you weren't in training or playing in a match?

My roommate was Istvan Kovacs, with whom we have known each other for a very long time and we have been roommates at training camps before, but now that he has become a father of two, we also had the opportunity to talk about a lot of things we didn't know before. Koko has a very good perception of life, with which I can fully identify, we see many things similarly in life. We talked a lot about the last 7 years, the common periods we had at Vidi, but he was also keenly interested in what my career abroad was like, what it was like to play football in Poland and America. Of course we talked a lot about the family and the children, which was very good. During the meals we sat in the same place with Adam Kovacsik and Mate Patkai and every time we left the dining room the last, because we talked a lot in fours. Many people may think football is always the topic at times, but that’s not the case. We talk about the most mundane things, family, kids, or just daily topics like this viral situation that has changed everyone’s lives on some level.  Because we are football players, you don’t have to imagine us talking about football for 24 hours a day. In our free time, we also had the opportunity to do some team-building, which we did very well. As a team captain, my intention is to participate in a team-building program at least once a month in the future, as I have learned how important it is abroad.

- You’ve also played football on two continents in recent years, what do you think, can Vidi compete with a Legia Warsaw or Chicago Fire? I’m not primarily thinking about team performance here, as it changes from season to season, I am wondering how as a club, how do you see how much Vidi has improved since 2015 when you left?

Given the club and the conditions, we are not at all lagging behind either the Poles or the Americans. We train in excellent conditions everyday, we, the players, have no problem with anything, we only have to care about football The club has developed a lot in the last 5 years, I say this even though we had the best conditions in the country in 2015 and this is the case today, in 2020 as well. For me, it feels very good, as I feel Vidi completely on my own, as well as Szekesfehervar. What is a special pleasure for me is that even though the club is already at the same level as, say, a Polish team, it is not satisfied with this and is constantly looking for opportunities for further development and the club management is doing a lot improve further.  

If I tell you 19 goals, what comes to mind first?

You don't have to say anymore than that, look at my hand, - Niko pointed to his arm with goosebumps. This makes me feel special every time I think that 19 goals separates me from catching up with Jozsef Szabo, the most successful player in the history of Vidi. There is no day that I don’t think about this. However, this should not be motivating, as the most important thing is for the team to be successful. However, if I can contribute to the success with goals and assists, so that the team is successful, the goals will come and one of my biggest dreams will come true.