Michal Stašiov
Competitor at Trnava foosball club. Winner of the Goalie War competition and winner of second place in Open Doubles at the fourth edition of the Puchar Sołtysa. Winner of numerous individual and team awards. He has been playing foosball for 19 years and has been participating in tournaments for 8 years.
English version: original spelling
English version: original spelling
Toughest opponent of your career?
The most difficult opponent in your career?
One of the toughest and probably the most difficult players I have played against is Martin Jalakša. He is a very experienced Slovakian player with an excellent overview of all table positions and with a very fast and accurate pinshot. It is always a challenge for me to play against such an experienced player as Martin.
There are really many strong players in football. I was very surprised by the Polish player Michal Lipinski, who presents a high level of play despite his young age. In Slovakia, we have many quality players such as Šimon Vároš, Peter Cingel and Jozef Horčiak, who are among the world's best, but probably the toughest player I played against is Martin Jalakša.
One of the most difficult and probably the most difficult player I played against is Martin Jalakša. He is a very experienced Slovak player with a great overview of all table positions and a very fast and accurate pinshot. It is always a challenge for me to play against such an experienced player as Martin.
There are really many strong players in table football. I was very surprised by the Polish player Michal Lipinski, who despite being young, his game is really at a high level. In Slovakia, we have many high-quality players such as Šimon Vároš, Peter Cingel or Jozef Horčiak, who belong to the world's top players, but probably the hardest player I played against is Martin Jalakša.
Toughest match during Pucharu Sołtysa?
The most difficult match during the Village Cup?
The most difficult match during the Pucharu Sołtysa was the doubles final against Michal Lipinski, who had Tomasz Lesinski in defence. My partner Jaroslav Holík and I were quite exhausted, as we only arrived at the tournament on the day of the event after a 4-hour journey, and the final took place late at night. I had also spent a lot of energy beforehand to beat Grzegorz Zawilowicz in the final of Goalie War. We made it to the final without defeat, so we had the advantage and only needed to win 1 game out of 2 sets, but Michal Lipinski played really well and we ended up taking a good second place in the discipline.
The most difficult match during the Soltys Cup was the open doubles final against Michal Lipinski, who had Tomáš Lesinski in the goal. My partner Jaroslav Holík and I were quite exhausted as we arrived at the tournament only on the day of the event after a 4-hour journey and the final took place in the late hours and I spent a lot of energy beating Grzegorz Zawilowicz in the goalie war final.
We reached the finals without a loss, thanks to which we had an advantage and we only needed to win 1 game out of two sets, but Michal Lipinský played really well and in the end we finished in a nice second place in this discipline.
Favourite technique/play?
Your favourite technique / move?
What I enjoy most about foosball is playing defence, where I can most effectively use my two favourite shots: the pull shot and the push shot. I've been playing foosball competitively since 2015, when I started going to university, but I became interested in foosball when I was 11, when I mainly played push shots. Now I mainly play pull shots because it's a bit less energy intensive and mostly harder for the opponent to catch.
When you want to play at a high level, you have to take all the details into account and tire your opponent out as much as possible. Foosball is a sport like any other, and winning always makes you happy, but you also need to know how to lose.
In table football, I enjoy playing in the goal the most, where I can most effectively use my two favourite shots, the pull shot and the push shot. I have been playing table football competitively since 2015, when I started going to university, but table football interested me already when I was 11 years old, when I mainly played the push shot, but now I play mostly the pull shot, since it is a little less energy-intensive and for the opponent mostly a little harder to catch.
When you want to play at a high level, you have to take into account all the details and torment your opponent as much as possible. Table football is a sport like any other, and victory is always pleasing, but you also need to know how to lose.
Favourite table?
Your favourite table?
I enjoy playing foosball on any type of table with anyone who wants to play for fun, even at an amateur table where it is often a joy to see the table still holding together :D. However, the most fun I have is playing against strong, experienced players on designated practice or tournament tables of any type, where you have to follow set rules.
Each type of table is slightly different, on which you have to use a different shooting technique. I like to play most on the Leonhart table or the Rosengart table. If I had to choose one, I would choose Rosengart, on which professional tournaments are held in Slovakia.
I like to play foosball on any type of table with anyone who wants to play just for fun, even at amateur foosball table where you are often happy that the table holds together :D. But I enjoy the most when I play against strong experienced players on fixed training or tournament tables of any type where you have to follow the set rules.
Each type of table is somewhat different, on which it is appropriate to apply a different shot technique. I enjoy playing leonhrat or rosengart the most. If I had to choose 1, I would choose Rosengart, on which professional tournaments take place in Slovakia.
Favourite foosball competition?
Your favourite competition in foosball?
I most enjoy 'catching' and shooting pull shots or push shots. I have good reflexes that I can use in my favourite disciplines which are 2ball and Goalie War. If I had to choose one discipline, I would choose Goalie War. Jozef Horčiak, the organiser of Slovak tournaments, promoted your tournament (Puchar Sołtysa), in which there was a very nice and interesting trophy to be won in this discipline. My friend and I decided to take part in it and we were very satisfied. There was a really good atmosphere with good organisation and quality players, and the tournament venue was located in a pleasant environment.
I enjoy catching and shooting pull shots or push shots the most and I have a good reflex which I can use very well in my favourite disciplines which are 2 ball and goalie war. If I had to choose one, I would choose goalie war. Jozef Horčiak, the organizer of Slovak tournaments, promoted your tournament in which a very nice and interesting trophy was played for in this discipline. So my friend and I decided to participate and we were very satisfied because you had a really good atmosphere, an organization with quality players and the place of the tournament was located in a pleasant environment.
Biggest career success?
The greatest success in your career?
When I started playing competitive football, I was selected to represent the university, where we finished 1st and won a really nice trophy and even received a nice scholarship. I was also very happy when in the 22/23 season in Slovakia, after playing well, I became the champion of the Banská-Bystřice region, where I come from. I'm probably most happy that I managed to win the Puchar Sołtysa, because it's really a very nice trophy that I won after a fierce battle in my favourite sport, Goalie War.
When I started playing competitive table football, I was selected as a representat of the university in table football, where we won 1st place and won a really nice trophy and even received a nice scholarship. I was also very pleased when in the 22/23 season in Slovakia I became the champion of the Banská Bystrica region, where I come from, where I played really well. But I'm probably the most happy that I managed to win the Soltys Cup, because that trophy is really very nice and was won after a hard fight in my favorite discipline, goalie war.
What do you miss about football as a sport?
What do you miss in foosball as a discipline?
I like a fast game and I like fun disciplines, so I came up with the idea why not play like this more often on bigger tables where you can play e.g. 3 on 3, 4 on 4 etc. I had the opportunity to play on such tables before and it was really fun.
In professional tournaments, fouls are often called when someone hits the table, when someone turns the peasant a few times, when someone talks during play or when someone holds the ball for a long time, etc. When a situation arises where an opponent asks for the ball after such a foul, then there are times when the offender disagrees, which sometimes leads to an argument. Even if the referee is present at the table, I don't think his decision is always right. I think it is a good idea to install sensors on the tables that can signal such fouls. In high-level tournaments, it would also be useful to check players for alcohol or other drugs, and I think this would only increase the quality of the games.
I like a fast game, and I like fun disciplines, which led me to the idea of why it is not played more on larger tables where they could play, for example, 3 against 3, 4 against 4, etc. I've had the chance to play on such tables before and it was really fun.
In professional tournaments, fouls are often reported when someone hits the table or when someone spins the players several times or when someone talks or when someone holds the ball for a long time, etc. When a situation arises where the opponent asks for the ball based on such a foul, sometimes the offending player does not agree, which sometimes leads to arguments. Even if the referee is present at the table, I don't think that the referee's decision is always correct, so it might be advisable to install detectors in the football tables that would be able to report such fouls. It would also be appropriate when tournaments are played at a high level to check whether the players have consumed alcohol or other intoxicating substances, and I think it would only increase the quality of the games.