“The team of Semak is two heads higher”: Chervichenko about the problems of “Spartak”, the motivation of “Zenith” and the “judicial conspiracy”

“In St. Petersburg, Spartak will be judged as comfortably as possible”

- “Zenit” in the current season looks head and shoulders stronger than rivals in the RPL. Do you think Spartak has a chance of winning?

- I would say that the team of Sergei Semak looks a cut above some and two - Spartak. To verify this, just look at the standings. Petersburgers have almost twice as many points. In the game, red and white have no chance. Blue-white-blue is stronger in all lines. If it weren’t for the cup match, it would be difficult to even say that Spartak would catch a draw.

- But such meetings are always behind the brackets ...

- Look, in another semi-final, Ural is playing with Khimki, who cannot scrape up money to enter the RPL. It is necessary to survive in the Cup for 90 minutes, you can always successfully escape to a counterattack or “score a fool”, and then put a “bus” at the gates. Objectively, Spartak has no chance, but it seems to me that the hysteria around refereeing will help the team.

- Do not you think that to some extent Spartak will be comfortable playing with Zenit, because the red and white will be able to act as the “second number”?

- I agree. Especially at the “Zenith” in the center of the defense are two let experienced and skillful, but not the fastest players - Yaroslav Rakitsky and Branislav Ivanovich. And Spartak just has guys who are able to escape, starting from Ayrton and ending with the attackers. This is the only moment that Spartak can take advantage.

Plus, the red and white naryd two oceans of tears about the work of the referees. I think in St. Petersburg they will be judged as comfortably as possible. Controversial episodes will be interpreted in favor of Spartak. In principle, the club’s line of behavior was aimed at this.

- That is, the judges in St. Petersburg will not favor the champion?

- The story of the judicial conspiracy against Spartak is fictional nonsense, all the more so now VAR works everywhere. You can tell tales that the repetitions look somehow wrong, but pay attention to how you adequately reacted to the defeat of Lokomotiv in CSKA. But in the gates of the army appointed two penalties with the help of VAR. Others complain about any reason after each game. In all controversial episodes in matches involving red and white, the referees then confirmed the correctness of the VAR verdicts. Before the introduction of the system, Spartak was used to scoring controversial goals. It is enough to recall the champion season. Hence the hysteria.

- In your opinion, Spartak are judged like all other teams?

- What is the point of condemning the team, which comes in ninth place? After the resumption of the season, the red and white almost immediately ceased to claim anything in the championship. The only question is whether they will take the tenth place or the 12th. Who needs a conspiracy against Spartak in such a situation? Look at the battle at the top of the standings. And there nobody complains about the work of the referee. Why then in “Spartak” they whine from morning till night, starting from the club owner and ending with the players? Maybe because they play badly? At the same time, strong guys gathered in the team, who should not blame everything on the judges. But in the game with Akhmat, the team acted as manly as possible. Two goals did not count, but they returned to the field and scored three. Beauties!

- Will the return of Domenko Tedesco to the coaching bench have a beneficial effect on the team?

- We understand that disqualification of a coach is a conditional thing. Anyway, he is still inside the team. There is no big difference in whether Tedesco leads the team from the bench or from the stands. As for his emotionality, it's hard for me to judge how this affects football players. Someone like that can annoy, someone - to motivate. But in my clubs there were no such trainers.

- “Spartak” in the game with “Zenith” will not help the disqualified Roman Zobnin. Will this loss be disastrous for the team?

- In my opinion, this is a very big loss. In the match against Akhmat, Zobnin looked great. The novel always looks good. He is an aggressive, persistent guy. I have never seen him lying around or whining. I believe that today he is one of the best players of Spartak.

- Can Tedesco, given the disqualification of Zobnin, exchange one of the attackers for the midfielder?

- It is hard to say. Not sure Tedesco will saturate the center of the field. Whom are the red and white going to replay there? Zenit is much stronger in this line. Most likely, Spartak will play on defense and will bet on counterattacks. For him, this is the match of the year. If the team fails to reach the final, this season will be the worst for her in the last ten years.

- Given the bet on high-speed attacks and the disqualification of Esekiel Ponce, is it likely that Jordan Larsson or Alexander Sobolev will appear in the starting lineup of Spartak? 

- Spartak has a good selection of players in the attack. In my opinion, it would be logical in hot weather to try to exhaust the age rivals. And in the second half, Sobolev, who is able to beat “on a handkerchief,” can already go out for tired players. Yes, and Reziuan Mirzov can coolly remove the ball from side to side, although the efficiency of its actions is low.

- In your opinion, if Spartak does not win the Cup, will Tedesco be dismissed?

- It all depends on how the red and white lose. If they yield in a bitter struggle, it is unlikely. And if a defeat happens, anything is possible. Leonid Fedun is able to make an unexpected decision on emotions. Such a thing followed him. But if you remove Tedesco, who should be appointed in his place? They talked about Kurban Berdyev. A good option, but it was immediately rejected.

Then it’s better to leave the German, the more it is clear that he is a fan of the cause. Of all the last coaches of the team, he most of all surrenders to Spartak. In addition, Domenico teaches the Russian language, this is also a big plus. And the team began to play better with him than with Oleg Kononov. Improvements are visible, for example, the guys began to competently act positionally. If there is a coach under which Spartak will become stronger, you can think about his invitation, but the question is, who is this person? I believe that today Tedesco’s resignation will be the wrong move for any scenario.

“It would be manly to come to St. Petersburg and beat Zenit, and not write complaints”

- In your opinion, can the Zenit players allow a certain impression in the Cup semi-finals?

- Ruled out. Petersburgers did not try very hard in the match with Orenburg. Perhaps there was some kind of corporate solidarity: we are not the strongest in the squad; if you can beat, beat. This is an injection in the direction of those who believe that Orenburg regularly gives points to Zenit. I think this is not the case.

Rather, the game with the Orenburg team was considered as a preparatory game. Petersburgers want to get a “golden double”, so the mood will be maximum. Moreover, you can do it by beating Spartak. But if red-white breaks into the finals, I won’t have the confidence that they will eventually take the trophy. Teams go to matches with Zenit, feeling like outsiders. But Spartak is no longer afraid.

- Ivanovich, due to the tragedy in the family, missed a couple of matches, although he should return to the game with Spartak. Can the incident, as well as a pause in the training process, adversely affect the Serb?

- According to my observations, such pauses are hard to give when you need to play two matches a week. Ivanovich, on the contrary, will come full of energy. And in his case we are talking about the death of an elderly relative.  

- In the last two matches, “Zenith” in the center of defense came out 19-year-old Danila Prokhin. Can we expect his appearance in the start and in the game with Spartak?

- Only if Zenit will win with a big score. The hosts will leave the main structure and will fight. I think the match will be very interesting. On the one hand, Spartak lost everything that is possible. On the other hand, nothing presses the team. Everyone understands that if they do not win, it will not be worse.

- In the first four matches with Spartak Artyom Dziuba scored regularly, but in the next six he did not distinguish himself even once. Over the years, the forward began to relate to the former team less fundamentally? 

- Perhaps Artyom saved goals for the Cup semi-final. In Dziuba, the game goes in waves. He scores a lot, then does not score. Dziuba is an assertive guy, but not very fast. And at Spartak, Georgy Dzhikia plays elegantly in position, and it is difficult to beat him. Ayrton will help keep Artyom at the expense of speed if he does not get distracted by Serdar Azmun. On the “second floor”, “Spartak” is still not easy. But do not forget that the “Zenith” has, for example, Rakitsky, capable of greatly breaking through from any distance. For red and white, this is a very uncomfortable player. Alexander Maksimenko is still young. He saves the team in unimaginable situations, but sometimes makes such gross mistakes that you can laugh at them for another week.

- Could the 20-year-old Pavel Maslov be the weak link in the defense of Spartak?

- And where, no matter how in such matches, to educate the character of a young footballer? If Paul will stand in this meeting, he will become a full-fledged footballer. Young people, on the contrary, need to be trusted. Guys should be able to cope with nerves.

- The president of Zenit, Alexander Medvedev, before the game indecently joked about Spartak. Will this give the team an extra boost of motivation?

- Hardly. Of course, Medvedev went too far. His joke, in my opinion, turned out to be incorrect. But it would be more masculine to come to St. Petersburg and beat Zenit, rather than write complaints.

- For his words, Medvedev was fined 200 thousand rubles. How correct is this?

- All that is going on in the RFU Ethics Committee is a circus. Only he does not go, but stands still. There is nothing to comment on. If you ask why the fine was 200 thousand rubles, and not 100 or 300, no one will explain anything to you. The best thing that this body can do is fine people for words.

- A member of the ethics committee Anzor Kavazashvili before the game suggested disqualifying Dziuba with Azmun for indecent behavior. Adequate measure?

- I respect Anzor Amberkovich very much as the legend of Spartak, but people in the public space should speak with caution. Although the frames themselves struck me. Especially I do not understand the position of Azmuna. But you need to adequately assess the situation. You can’t deprive people of the opportunity to go on the field for fooling around in the locker room.