“Do not look for the extremes”: what did the players and coaches say after the defeat of “Zenith” from “Benfica” in the Champions League match

“There was silence in the locker room”

In the final match of the group stage of the Champions League, St. Petersburg Zenit lost on the road to the Lisbon Benfica with a score of 0: 3. The Russians took last place in Quartet G and did not get into the playoffs of European competitions.

All three goals blue-white-blue conceded in the second half. Summing up the meeting, the head coach of the team Sergey Semak noted that at the beginning of the meeting he was satisfied with the actions of the wards, however, the ball conceded in the 47th minute and then the removal of Douglas Santos negatively affected the team’s mood.

“The result does not suit us, but it is certainly not a disaster. Now the louder the words, the more attention. After a long absence in the Champions League, we realized how difficult it would be, alas, it did not work out of the group. We hope that next year we will return to the tournament and do it better. The result is upset, but we will work to become stronger, ”said the mentor.

The specialist admitted that Zenit made too many mistakes, letting Benfica realize its attacking potential. At the same time, according to him, staffing problems prevented St. Petersburgers from acting in full force.

“As for Alexander Erokhin, he helped well on the standards, given the fact that Benfica knows how to execute them and has tall players. Did he fall out or not? Do not stand out someone, look for extreme ones. Everyone played poorly, ”Semak emphasized.

In a parallel match of group G, Lyon tied with Leipzig - 2: 2. If the German team won, Zenit could take third place and get into the playoffs of the Europa League, but this did not happen.

“Everyone knew that after the first half,“ Leipzig ”was 2-0. But I think this did not affect our performance. The result is related to our mistakes on the field, ”concluded Semak.

Blue-white-blue football players also did not begin to shift the burden of responsibility for the defeat to someone and admitted their mistakes. According to defender Branislav Ivanovich, many unrealized moments cost the team victory.

“It was very difficult to prepare from a psychological point of view, and, of course, the result of Lyon did not play a role for us. The match showed that at this level there is no luck and miracle, everyone should do their work themselves. It was necessary to focus and play all 90 minutes in the way we can and should. One goal - and panic, everything changes. In such meetings you need to be prepared for everything, ”Ivanovich said.

He added that the fourth place in the group does not match the potential of Zenit, however, at the moment, the team’s performance has been affected by a little experience playing in the Champions League in recent years.

Zenit should set itself such tasks that in any situation and in any year to win the championship of Russia. But today, each of our players is very hard inside, after such a situation it is difficult to find words. We will worry, but I’m sure that the team will grow and show the best football, ”concluded the Serb.

A similar position was expressed by defender Douglas Santos. According to him, after the first goal into their goal, Petersburgers lost their concentration on the game, because of which Benfica got more opportunities for attacks.

“I do not agree that Zenit is weaker than Benfica, Lyon and Leipzig. We are even somewhat stronger than them, which we proved during this Champions League. Of course, if Malki, Dryussi, Kuzyaev and Zhirkov were in the ranks, we could solve our problem. But football can be anything. We need to understand what we did wrong in order to improve our result in the future, ”Santos quoted the Championship.

Frustrated by the defeat, the forward of Zenit and the Russian national team Artyom Dziuba emotionally reacted to the result of the game: “There is one word - crap.”

In turn, midfielder Alexei Sutomin also lamented for episodes with a quick goal and removal at the beginning of the second half.

“It must have been a starting point. Then it was hard to turn the tide of the meeting. “Benfica” controlled the ball well, and earned an own goal. Lost, and there are no words, ”Sutomin said.

Zenit goalkeeper Mikhail Kerzhakov confirmed the words of Semak that the result of the match “Lyon” - “Leipzig” did not affect the mood of the Russians.

“My head is completely empty, nothing more. We did not watch what was happening in a parallel match. And during the break we did not talk about it, we were not specifically informed. Maybe someone knew. I can’t say yet what happened in the episode with the first goal. I only remember the ending, and how it all began - no. With the second and third it is clear. What was in the locker room? Silence - what to say? Everyone understands everything perfectly, ”said the goalkeeper.

“Managed to turn the meeting around”

Unlike the rival, Benfica managed to remain calm throughout the match. This was stated by the Portuguese head coach Bruno Lage.

“Enjoyed your game. Could we go further in the Champions League? Yes. But we are constantly looking for the best starting lineup. The main thing is to understand the mood of the team and choose a combination based on the opponent. Then we can feel the progress we are striving for. We must approach matches without negative emotions of the past, regardless of the tournament, ”the specialist explained.

According to the results of the group stage of the Champions League, “Benfica” took third place and went to the playoffs of the Europa League. According to midfielder Pizzi, the team could count on a higher position, but this result can be considered satisfactory.

"I am very happy. Everything worked out perfectly. We have a strong and close-knit team. We are all fighting for the same team, doing one job. I again managed to help with a goal and an assist, but the main thing is that they won. The last match had to be won - we could no longer look back. We wanted to win, we tried to succeed and did it confidently, ”Pizzi quotes the UEFA official website.

In turn, the defender of the Lisbon club Ruben Diash paid tribute to the opponent.

“We were very stable throughout the match, from the first minute. We were able to act patiently and find free zones. “Zenith” closed well with the score 0-0, as the result suited them. But we managed to turn the course of the meeting. We had a great match and showed a good game, ”Diash said.