"Battle for a place in the sun": Ledyakhov about the match "Lokomotiv" - "Spartak", the skill of Promes and the transformation of Smolov

"The opponents will score at least one goal"

- Lokomotiv played the Russian Cup match against Sochi this week, while Spartak was resting.

Does this mean that the red and white will approach the derby more fresh, or will the railroad workers have resources?

- Lokomotiv should have enough strength.

The team is doing well in all respects after the resumption of the season.

Now the red-greens are on an emotional upsurge and, moreover, have reached the Cup semi-finals.

It's no big deal that instead of a regular training session, they played an official game.

In RPL Lokomotiv is currently in third place, Spartak - second.

It will be a battle for a place in the sun.

It can be assumed that the winner will make it to the Champions League.

- Both teams are comfortable attacking at speed and using free zones in the opponent's defense.

What tactics might they prefer in this match?

- We do not know how events will develop.

Let's see in what state the teams will approach the game and which players will be in the cage.

I will not undertake to predict something.

It is possible that the match, due to its importance, will not be very spectacular, but I think the game will still be double-edged.

The opponents will score at least one goal each.

Let's hope the fans enjoy it.

- At the same time, Lokomotiv in defense acts incomparably more reliably than Spartak.

Could this be a decisive advantage for railroad workers?

- Perhaps, yes, because the red and white concedes in every match.

And there are big questions about how the team defends itself as a whole.

In addition, Loko scores a lot, and in the spring Fedor Smolov scored an excellent form.

But Domenico Tedesco's wards compensate for the problems in their half with a bright play in attack.

- Can the absence of Samuel Gigot be fatal for the red and white?

- This is a serious problem, because the Frenchman is the leading defender of Spartak.

On the other hand, there is Ilya Kutepov in the cage, whose capabilities are well known to everyone.

It is no coincidence that he was even called to the last training camp of the national team.

So there is someone to replace Gigot with.

Let Kutepov prove that he is a footballer of the first team.

- Pavel Maslov scored two goals into his own net in the last three rounds of the RPL.

How should the coaching staff in such a situation behave with a football player so that he again feels self-confidence?

- He is a young guy, and young people tend to be wrong.

Yes, Pavel unsuccessfully played for the Russian youth team at the European Championship and scored two own goals in the RPL at once.

However, this does not negate the fact that Maslov is a quality defender.

It is no coincidence that he practically does not drop out of the main line-up of Spartak.

Tedesco is doing the right thing that he continues to trust the player, despite the blots.

Over time, Maslov will gain confidence in his abilities and begin to show a better game.

- Are his own goals an accident or a consequence of systemic errors associated, for example, with the wrong choice of position?

- I would definitely not speak about the pattern.

I watched the match with Rostov, and there it was difficult to accuse Pavel of cutting the ball into his own goal.

There was a slight ricochet.

Maslov occupied an absolutely correct position in his own penalty area, and he was simply unlucky.

And so he acts confidently in the center of defense.

- How hard will the absence of Alex Kral hit the red and white?

It seemed that Spartak managed to calmly cope with Rostov without him.

- If "Spartak" intends to fight for the highest places, then it must be able to get out of such situations when leaders fall out for one reason or another.

Against Rostov, the red and whites also played without Kral, and the team did not notice his absence.

In the support zone, the motor-driven Roman Zobnin and Nail Umyarov looked very decent, through which most of the attacks began.

For the latter, it is now a particularly important moment, because he has the opportunity to oust the Czech from the starting lineup, although Alex, of course, is a quality footballer.

Plus, the club has acquired a fairly skilled performer, Jorrit Hendrix.

He can also take a place in the support zone.

"Sobolev scores against outsiders and middle peasants, this is a slightly different level"

- Alexander Sobolev scored seven goals in the last four matches of the national championship.

However, in rivals, the red-whites had imperfect opponents in terms of defensive actions.

Will the forward be able to compete on equal terms with defenders of such class as Vedran Chorluka and Pablo?

- Of course, these are very high-quality players.

And it will be interesting to watch Sobolev play in a match with a really strong opponent.

Yes, Alexander scores against outsiders and middle peasants, but this is a slightly different level.

Obviously, in the spring, he got into excellent shape.

The statistics speak for themselves.

But you shouldn't concentrate on Sobolev alone.

In Cherkizovo, everything will depend on how other players from the attacking group of Spartak show themselves.

- Both Loko's central defenders are fighting well, but at the same time they do not have high speed.

Is Jordan Larsson able to take advantage of this?

- Pablo and Corluka are really quite slow.

However, at the RPL level, both look decent due to their excellent positioning.

Spartak has fast players in its squad, but Lokomotiv can sit as low as possible in defense so as not to leave free zones to the opponent.

I think this is how the railroad workers will act.

Spartak's attack is very mobile.

We see a lot of movement.

Promes and Larsson are fast guys, and Sobolev perfectly clings to balls.

In no case should they be allowed to scatter.

- In 2021, Lokomotiv is playing with one defensive midfielder Maxim Mukhin.

Isn't it risky to leave him alone against a master like Promes?

- Mukhin is left alone only when the team attacks.

When the railroad workers give the ball, two insiders sit down to him - Krykhovyak and Daniil Kulikov or Dmitry Barinov.

So the hosts will have enough performers in the support zone.

Yes, and Mukhin himself confidently entrenched himself at the base of Loko.

It is no coincidence that Cherchesov called him to the national team and released him as a substitute in the match with Slovenia.

In turn, Promes does not act exclusively on the top ten positions and often falls on the flanks, moves along the entire front of the attack.

- Fyodor Smolov scored a double in the Russian Cup match against Sochi.

Earlier, he hit the gates of the same southerners and Arsenal in the RPL.

Can we say that the striker has fully recovered from the injury?

- Smolov hasn't played for a long time.

He was constantly pursued by some kind of injuries.

Now he is finally in great shape and looks very decent.

"Sochi" in the Cup Fedor scored great goals.

I will call it Loko's main striking force at this stage.

Plus, of course, he is eager to return to the national team and take part in the Euro.

For health reasons, the striker has not even been called there for a very long time.

May God grant him to finish the season without new damage.

Then there will be every chance to play in the championship of the continent.

- Is it possible to link the striker's progress with the fact that Lokomotiv began to act more in space, and he got the opportunity to demonstrate his strong qualities?

- Many opponents in Russia previously tried to play with the red-greens quite low and tried not to leave them free space.

Accordingly, the attackers simply did not have zones into which they could break.

Now Loko has started to act a little differently.

Let's say Sochi didn’t close in defense, and Smolov confidently took advantage of this twice.

- Now in Lokomotiv there is a paradoxical situation in which in the middle of the field in a conditional rhombus everyone is playing so well that it is difficult for even Dmitry Barinov and Anton Miranchuk to return to the base.

What position do you think Nikolic can use the latter?

- It is hard to say.

He has just recovered from his injury and is still not in optimal condition.

Zhemaletdinov after the resumption of the season looks very decent and even made his way to the base of the national team.

Right now it's hard for Anton to compete with him.

Nevertheless, when Miranchuk gets in shape, I think Nikolic will find a place on the field for both.

There are options.

For example, you can use them as insiders or completely abandon the scheme with a diamond in the middle of the field.

The more great football players there are, the better.

This is a pleasant headache for a trainer.

It is clear that Miranuk is a first-team player, and he should not sit on the bench.

On the other hand, at the moment Loko has a result, while Zhemaletdinov is useful in the top ten positions, and there is no point in changing anything.

- Another key performer of Loko, Marinato Guilherme, began to play much more confidently - after the resumption of the season, he has five crackers.

What is the reason for this progress?

- Marinato is a fairly experienced footballer.

It is not the first year that he has been playing for Lokomotiv.

Yes, Guilherme had a bad stretch at the end of 2020, but through experience he managed to improve his emotional state.

Plus, at the training camp, the person got in excellent shape.

Now he looks very confident, hence the result.

The naturalized Brazilian has always been a high-level goalkeeper.

In the spring, he proved it once again.

"Football players, first of all, do not play for Tedesco, but for their names and club"

- There is a popular saying in football that it takes three years for a coach to build a new team.

Are you surprised that Marko Nikolic gave the result so quickly?

- In modern realities, this saying does not make sense.

Show me at least one club that requires a result and at the same time gives a mentor three years.

There is no such.

If a specialist is qualified, and the composition fits his concept, one season is enough for him.

- It turns out that Nikolic took even less time ...

- We can only be glad for him.

It is especially pleasant that such a number of young footballers have played in Loko's squad under the Serb.

But, you see, under Yuri Semin, the team also occupied a leading position in the RPL.

The new coach got a good team and qualified performers.

And now we see that he himself is able to build a great team.

- Domenico Tedesco after the resumption of the season, despite all the rumors, has repeatedly stated bluntly that he will not stay with Spartak.

How then can you explain such a crazy attitude of his charges?

“We can only guess, but I think Tedesco will definitely leave.

Football players are professionals, and first of all, they do not play for the coach, but for their names and the club.

Spartak always claims the highest places, and now the team has a chance to compete for the championship.

In addition, the guys are very physically ready.

Somewhere they were lucky.

Hence the courage.

- But many Spartak players admitted their sympathy for Tedesco.

- Show me at least one current football player who will scold his coach.

He leaves, but they stay.

Someone needs to renew the contract.

As I said, people, first of all, play for themselves and want to achieve something in the current season.

But we must pay tribute to Tedesco, the team in "Spartak" has developed a wonderful one.

- Many people associate the progress of Spartak with the arrival of Promes.

- For our championship, this is the top performer.

Quincy immediately got into good shape.

Besides, as far as I know, he creates a good atmosphere in the team.

The partners see how the Dutchman is a great footballer, and he serves as a kind of example for them.

Obviously, with the arrival of Promes, Spartak no longer has problems in the locker room.

This is a real leader.