Spartak didn’t surprise you
In the semi-finals of the Cup of Russia, Zenit beat Spartak in their field with a score of 2: 1. At the post-match press conference, the head coach of the winners Sergey Semak thanked the opponent for a good match and “crazy dedication”.
“There was a real cup match, a lot of controversial decisions, cards. But these are emotions. I am pleased with the guys. We will prepare for the finals. It’s important that we won the right to play there, ”said Semak.
Some were surprised by the replacement of defender Vyacheslav Karavaev with a colleague in the lineup of Jordan Osorio in the 77th minute of the match. However, the mentor explained that this was due to the active actions of the striker “Spartak” Alexander Sobolev.
“Great played Ayrton, actively connected. Jordan Larsson, Zelimkhan Bakaev are fast players. Sobolev was good. Moments arose at our goal after flanking gears. Alexander competently opened behind the defenders and remained face to face with the extreme defenders. We added Osorio and solved this problem, ”said Semak.
According to the mentor, Malcolm's transfer to the right was due to the fact that Spartak felt the most vulnerable on this flank.
“There are players who can act in several positions. The rotation is caused by the fact that the opponent had young players. With this permutation, we closed two problems: we added creativity to the vulnerable zone and insured the zone in defense, ”he added.
During the match a lot of controversial moments arose, after one of them the specialist even received a yellow card. He admitted that he behaved too emotionally, but after the final whistle the misunderstanding was resolved.
“It seemed to me that there was no foul on Daler Kuzyaev on Ayrton. Tried to shout to the judge. He took it as a temper. After the game, we talked, shook hands. Everything is fine, ”the trainer assured.
In the final of the Cup of Russia Zenit will meet with Khimki, who beat Ural in the second semifinal. Semak does not believe that this will be an advantage for blue-white-blue, since the strongest reach the decisive match.
“Khimki” will be weaker, because they have not played for a long time? Yes, rather they will be stronger! They have a week to prepare for the next game. And we have a match in two days. We will try to do everything to win, ”Semak promised.
In this case, the Zenit players themselves reacted to the result quite restrained. Goalkeeper Mikhail Kerzhakov emphasized that the team is satisfied with the victory, but there is no euphoria from reaching the final.
“Perhaps Zenit relaxed in the end of the first half. Unfortunately, sometimes we make mistakes at the beginning of the game, as we do not immediately enter it. I don’t know what this is connected with. We were ready for everything, we sorted the combination with a goal before the game, but Bakaev performed well and Sobolev stayed with Karavaev - of course, it was hard for him to fight with him in the air. And so they saw everything on the field that they were taking apart, “Spartak” didn’t surprise anyone, ”Zenit’s press service quoted Kerzhakov as saying.
At the same time, Malcolm did not belittle the merits of the red and white, noting that such meetings could not be easy. In his opinion, the opponent looked best at the end of the first half, when he evened the score.
“But our team has enough skill, experienced football players play here, who at the right moment find themselves in the right place and score the ball or decide the fate of the episode due to an effective pass. We were good today. Now you need to rest and regain strength, the finals are ahead - I hope we win! Of course, we will treat the opponent with all respect, but if we reached the decisive match, then only to raise the cup above our heads, ”Malkom is sure.
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Publication by zenit_spb (@zenit_spb) Jul 19, 2020 at 11:24 PDT
“We are optimistic next season”
In the camp of "Spartacus" reigned the opposite mood. Head coach Domenico Tedesco admitted that he was disappointed with the result. At the same time, he repeatedly emphasized that the team did everything possible to show a positive result. In his opinion, the key moment of the meeting was the goal of Kuzyaev, which allowed the opponent to come forward.
“In the second half, we controlled the game, tried to avoid counterattacks. That was the setup. They knew the danger of the Zenit - riding on Dziuba. It was important to control the ball as much as possible. We tried to transfer it from flank to flank. Sobolev had a great moment - if he scored, the score would be 2: 2, we could go into overtime, ”Tedesco complained.
The specialist did not comment on the work of the refereeing team, preferring to answer questions about the actions of the players. He paid tribute to Zenit, noting that any team is not easy to go against the leader of the Russian championship.
“Today was a student match against a teacher. We have a young team, but on the other hand, we played against the players who passed the World Cup and the Champions League, they are much more experienced and older. But we also created moments, the game was much better than in winter, ”the expert added.
In general, Tedesco praised the changes that have occurred with his team in recent times. According to him, the coaching staff was faced with the task of stabilizing the situation within the team, which had problems with psychology, and they succeeded. He emphasized that Spartak rejuvenated, began to concede fewer goals, the structure of his game changed.
“We had good meetings. For example, with Tambov, with Akhmat. I do not know if this can be called the best. But now all the players and coaching staff members can look in the mirror and tell themselves that they did everything possible to win. It is most important. Of course, Spartak must perform in European competitions, he deserves it. But circumstances need to be taken into account, at that time the team suffered five defeats in a row, ”Tedesco emphasized.
In conclusion, the German noted that Spartak was ready to start the new season from scratch, complaining only that there would be a very short pause between the two championships.
“We are optimistic about next season. I hope the situation changes. Yes, the series was not the best, but you remember how the games went. You understand why we lost in the match with Tambov, ”Tedesco said.
“In the Champions League they will rake”
If players and coaching staff refrained from making harsh statements, then the rivals' leaders fully expressed their dissatisfaction. Representatives of Spartak did not ignore the controversial decisions of the judges. General Director Shamil Gazizov noted that the outcome of the meeting was decided by “particulars”, without specifying what he means. He admitted that the club may protest the work of the referee.
“We see, at the moment it somehow turns out that the errors go towards Zenith. It is hard to say what is under this. But next year everything may change or mistakes will start in favor of another team - we don’t know this, ”Gazizov said.
In turn, the owner of the red-white Leonid Fedun cited statistics on the work of VAR.
“11 appeals on Spartak - 0 decisions in our favor. Zenit has 14 appeals - 10 of them are in their favor. God be with him, with the judging. It already cannot be different ... Spartak was no worse than a puffed champion. And in the Champions League they rake. I have no doubt. Since there will be no judicial support, ”Sport Express quotes Feduna.
Zenit CEO Alexander Medvedev emphasized that he did not intend to comment on Fedun’s words, but added that his team also had reasons for discontent.
“In the first moment, Sobolev pushed Yuri Zhirkov, a foul had to be whistled even then. What refereeing do we want to take as a sample? Where do they allow the struggle, as in England, or where does everyone fall like plush toys? I wish Spartak to concentrate on the game, and not on refereeing. They have a good team, good players, a good coach, albeit slightly emotional. It’s good to have emotions. The main thing is that they end after the final whistle, ”Medvedev said.