He came to West Bohemia in July 2017 from Prague Bohemians. Since then, Milan Havel has won two titles with Viktoria, played in the Champions League and the Europa League. He joined the West Bohemian team for the next three years. You can read what he experienced in the previous ones in our interview.

Milan, you´ve been in Viktorka since July 2017. How do you remember your arrival here in West Bohemia?

"It´s been a long time, but I remember it fondly. It´s always in front of my eyes. It was baked very quickly. I was in Germany with Bohemka for a training camp and in about five hours I was in Austria with Viktoria. I arrived at night, woke up Hejdis, who I had a lot of respect for at the beginning. It´s a beautiful memory and I´ll have it in my head for the rest of my life."

In fact, after his arrival, he celebrated his title right away.

"It´s true. It was an incredibly quick jump. If I think about it, we saved the league with Bohemka in the last round. After that, I was waiting for the Euro 11s and a year later I was celebrating the title with Viktorka. Moreover, in the autumn we didn´t lose some sixteen games, of which we won fourteen in a row. Then came the Champions League. That year was unreal. Plus the players who were there like David Limberský, Roman Hubník, Marek Bakoš, Dan Kolář, Matúš Kozáčik, Milan Petržela and others. These were great footballers and I was very lucky to experience them."

He has now played 170 games for Viktoria. Are you eyeing the two-hundred-match mark?

"It would be lovely, I would certainly like to achieve it. Although the numbers don´t mean much to me like that. It´s more about memories and I really like coming here every day. The numbers are secondary for me, but I would definitely like to make it happen."

"It´s true that I haven´t played the European Conference League yet. Of course the most prestigious was the Champions League. That´s the one every footballer wants to play since he was a kid and it was no different for me. I had the honour to play it here twice for Viktoria. I wish everyone could experience it, because those experiences are really unreal. And now I´m looking forward to the Conference Eight finals, the boys did great in the fall and this will be a great celebration for all of us. And for our fans. "

Who was your biggest rival?

"It´s hard to choose from. Those opponents were all really quality. I don´t want to underestimate anyone, but my freshest memories are of the last Champions League. The worst game for me was definitely against Bayern Munich. They were really outclassed. It was a blowout."

"I have to say that I was lucky because I met some really top players during my career. It wasn´t just in the Champions League, I played against Ronaldo in the national team. That ranks maybe the highest. I´ve met Sergio Ramos, Robert Lewandowski, Marcelo. Just a lot of great guys. I don´t want to forget anybody, but I don´t think I have anybody at the top. But I´ll definitely have the worst memories of Manny. He really struggled."

Does he still wake you up from your sleep now (laughs)?

"No, he doesn´t (laughs)."

Why number 24?

"It´s a bit of a coincidence. I got that number when I came from the youth team to the A-team. I´ve had it ever since. Of course I´ve had other numbers in the national team or on loan, for example, but the number twenty-four is the number I started with in big football and I´ll always have it if I can."

You will be linked with Viktoria for the next three years, how is that for you?

"I feel great in Viktorka, it´s like a second family. I appreciate the club´s trust and I will want to repay it with my performances on the pitch."