“The fans of both teams enjoyed it enormously”: what they said after Spartak’s victory over CSKA in the Russian Cup

“What happened on the coaching bench will remain there”

The quarterfinal match of the Cup of Russia between Spartak and CSKA did not leave anyone indifferent. The teams played out before extra time, scored five goals for two, and Esekiel Ponce received a red card. After the victorious goal of the red-white on the field, a mass brawl almost began. Emotions blazed and on the edge. After the final whistle, the coach of the hosts, Domenico Tedesco, tried to shake the hand of his counterpart Viktor Goncharenko, but he shied away from a handshake and even rather roughly pushed the German aside. During a press conference, the head coach of the army team explained their actions.

“What happened on the coaching bench will remain there. Emotions are emotions. We are already trying to do everything so that the coaches are not on the edge, but are sitting on the platform. Fine for every word and action. Football is an emotional sport, including for coaches. To be honest, I even liked to sit in the VIP box at the weekend: it’s warm, it’s not blowing, nobody distracts. But it will be wrong if we always sit there, ”Goncharenko said.

Goncharenko sends Tedesco on emotions. Probably Tedesco also pushed Karpova pic.twitter.com/Su2XHDfIbR

Despite the final defeat, the specialist praised the players for their character. According to him, after two goals conceded in the opening of the match, they “correctly reacted to what happened” and managed to return to the game. The coach and the work of the judging panel Sergey Ivanov were satisfied.

“In my opinion, in the episode with the second yellow card Ponce was the same go-ahead as a few minutes before when Vadim Karpov himself dismissed him. For me, refereeing today was excellent! The referee did not interfere with the game, this is important. Because often the judges do not allow martial arts and play football, ”Goncharenko added.

At the same time, the removal of the Argentinean, according to the expert, paradoxically only turned out to be in the hands of Spartak.

“It often happens: removal brings the team together. If Ponce remained on the field, perhaps the match would have turned out differently. And so the space between the lines disappeared, Spartak began to defend itself deeper. Plus, we planned to release Arnor Sigurdsson in order to increase speed in the attack, ”said the CSKA mentor.

Finally, he explained why he made four substitutions in the starting lineup of the team compared to the match of the 20th round of the RPL with Ural.

“When we started the process of generational change, at first the length of the bench was not enough. Now it is long enough, and we can rotate the composition. Today they acted very well and structurally, maybe a little upset the balance with substitutions. If we evaluate the football shown by CSKA, we still often give the initiative to the opponent instead of picking it up. Today there were periods when we could act more actively, ”the coach summed up.

“I understand the emotions of Goncharenko after such a match”

Tedesco was also primarily asked about the episode with Goncharenko. The German, like his counterpart, attributed the incident to emotions: “No problem. I understand his emotions after such a match. Everything happens ”

For more details, the Spartak coach spoke about the game of his players, who managed to break into the semifinals of the Russian Cup, although they allowed the opponent to recoup from the score 0: 2.

“It was a very difficult match with a strong opponent, which contained everything that was possible. I think the fans of both teams enjoyed it enormously. We could score more, created many opportunities with the score 2: 0. Instead, they made several gifts to the opponent, out of the blue they missed the second goal. They knocked the ball to the center instead of putting it on the flank. The opponent was the first in selection and equalized. As for dedication, the team showed itself perfectly both in regular time and in extra time. The outcome of the match was not known until the last. Could win, could lose. I am happy that in the end I won and reached the semifinals, ”Tedesco summed up the meeting.

The specialist also explained why in the first half the red-white acted mainly on counterattacks. According to him, this was due to the weak play of the opponent in defense with quick lunges. The first minutes of the meeting only confirmed the correctness of the chosen tactics.

“CSKA tried to lock us on the right flank. Nikolai Rasskazov with Ilya Kutepov, probably, most often met with the ball among all the players. Opponents acted in the same way - 3-5-2. With this arrangement, it is difficult to find space. The teams neutralized each other. Therefore, there were so many long gears. After all, CSKA also scored the second goal after being thrown and rebounded, ”explained the German tactical nuances.

Tedesco refrained from criticizing the judges, especially since his team ultimately won. However, he stated that he could not say with certainty what happened in the episode with the removal of Ponce.

“The only thing I did,” asked the referee to watch the episode repeat. He said that he had already done it, and there was no penalty. It only remained to accept this answer. As for Ponce, it's hard to lose such a player. Moreover, we were already preparing a replacement for him, Reziuan Mirzov was to enter the field. Perhaps there was a yellow card, I don’t know. But for us it was very difficult, ”the coach admitted.

The red-white mentor also spoke about the condition of Zelimkhan Bakayev, who received a concussion and was replaced during the break.

“We hope Zelimkhan will be able to play with Krasnodar.” Today he will undergo an examination. Of course, a game without such a creative and fast footballer becomes different. But Guus Til showed himself well and was active in pressure, especially in extra time. He even had a great moment to score the fourth goal. We have a good bench, there is someone to replace Bakaev. Ayaz Guliyev can also play in the center, we trust everyone, ”Tedesco said.

In the end, he once again thanked the wards for the game, finding kind words addressed to the team leaders.

“I want to say special thanks to Roma Zobnin, who played with the common cold, Til, who perfectly replaced, Alex Kral. Yes, everyone! They remained compact to the last, pressed. This victory is not my merit, but the merit of the guys, ”the coach emphasized.

Spartak CEO Thomas Zorn, who was also in a good mood after a hard victory, also spoke about the outcome of the meeting. At the same time, the functionary said that the club was going to challenge the red card of Ponce.

“The game was very emotional and liked. We won the second derby in a row. Today we rest, enjoy success. And tomorrow we’ll get together, assess the situation and prepare for Krasnodar. I saw that Goncharenko did not shake Tedesco’s hand, but these are emotions, everything happens, ”Zorn quotes“ Championship ”.

"We will not speak big words about the revival of" Spartacus "

The main character of the meeting as a result was Jordan Larsson. The Swede replaced during the second half and was marked by the winning ball in extra time. After the match, the forward called this goal “the most important at this stage of his career.” The attacker admitted that he had already discussed the game with his mother and sister, and in the near future he was going to talk with the famous father Henrik Larsson.

“Wonderful match. We quickly scored two goals, but the opponent recouped. Then Ponce received a red card, but Spartak managed to return to the game. Very happy that I scored. I would like to thank everyone for their support. I never felt anything like it, it's hard to explain my emotions now. Alexander Maksimenko made an assist. I think we need to arrange a competition between him and Ederson - who will knock the ball further, ”the footballer summed up the match.

Larsson also spoke about the removal of Ponce. In his opinion, the partner did not deserve a red card in this episode.

“Of course it's annoying. But we remained focused on the game. I am very glad that we only thought about football. I didn’t see the episode with a hand game by Igor Diveev. The guys said that it was necessary to point to the "point", - said the player.

In turn, the captain of Spartak Georgy Dzhikia called the cup game a good one and paid tribute to CSKA. The defender also jokingly apologized to the fans for having to spend more time at the stadium than planned.

“I also had things to do, but, as you see, I lingered. The main thing is that they won. All - with a victory. I can’t say that in the second half CSKA had some moments, we just could not score. I do not discuss refereeing, but deletion is not the case. The main thing is victory, we gathered in a circle, Tedesco said a few words. Nobody said anything supernatural. It’s clear that the match had to be completed even in the minority and scored, ”said the captain.

In addition, he spoke about two consecutive victories of the team, explained why there was a skirmish between the players during the break, and spoke about the state of Bakaev.

“We will not say big words about the revival of Spartak. Of course, it's nice to beat Dynamo, and then CSKA. But there is no euphoria, there is a difficult match ahead. After the break, everyone's emotions were in full swing, this is part of football. No need to pay such excessive attention. There was a conflict, but it is exhausted. The guys shook hands. The game with Zenit is not coming soon. While preparing for the "Krasnodar". Bakayev was at the doctors’s office, he’s undergoing some examinations, and I’ll write to him a little later, ”Jikia added.

Talked to reporters and another Spartak footballer who successfully replaced, Gus Til. He admitted that entering such a game was not easy.

“Zelimkhan received a concussion, and I went out onto the field and gave all of myself. I'm happy. The game was very equal. We had moments, CSKA - too. In the first minutes, Spartak was good, then the opponent scored. The second half began as if the scoreboard again lit “zeros”. This is the beauty of football: you can score twice, but no one guarantees you victory. I was happy after the final whistle, so many people came to cheer for us, ”the player admitted.

During the match, the Dutch midfielder not only did a huge amount of work, but could score in the end of the meeting, however, CSKA was incredibly saved by Igor Akinfeev.

“Save Akinfeeva was perfect, but if I rolled the ball down, it would be a goal,” said Til.

“Rebrov with Yeshchenko began to oppress Karpov, we intervened”

As part of CSKA, only Mario Fernandez stopped in the mixed zone. The rest of the army team, upset by the defeat, silently left the stadium. And the player of the Russian team, who became one of the main participants in the skirmish between the players during the break, said what caused the brawl.

“Artyom Rebrov and Andrei Yeshchenko began to oppress Karpov, they wanted to put pressure on him. We intervened so as not to intimidate the young comrade. I did not allow pressure on him. The opponent's goalkeeper pushed Vadim away, and I, in turn, pushed him. It is unacceptable to behave this way regardless of age, you need to respect the opponent and behave with dignity, ”the defender explained.

At the same time, Fernandez, like Goncharenko, complained that after the removal of Ponce, Spartak only closed even further.

“Even in the majority it was difficult for us to get into someone else's penalty area. Then “Spartak” once successfully delivered the ball from their goal, and Larsson scored. After that, the hosts closed completely. We represent the colors of the great club. We can lose or win, but we must always give all our best to the last drop of blood. Today the team played well. Spartak scored two quick goals, but we managed to equalize. We looked much better than in the match against Ural. Yes, and Spartak played by itself and allowed us to do it, ”the CSKA footballer summed up.