Zenit players refused interviews after the defeat to Arsenal, and the Tula players admitted that they dreamed of winning the Russian Cup. The sensational victory of Arsenal Tula in the 1/8 finals of the Russian Cup at Petrovsky silenced the Zenit players. () Some of them refused post-match comments, some pretended not to hear requests for interviews. Some did not reach the mixed zone at all, leaving the stadium via a roundabout route. Indeed, such a powerful blow to pride! Zenit has not won a single trophy in the last two seasons, so even relegation from the Russian Cup is extremely unpleasant. “What is there to talk about?” - the distressed Vyacheslav Malafeev threw up his hands, whom his teammates handed over to be torn to pieces by the opposing attackers. Andre Villas-Boas risked putting Hulk, Ezequiel Garay, and Axel Witsel in the starting lineup, despite the fact that in the next six days Zenit will face battles with CSKA and Bayer. Did not help.
"Today's result is a big shock for us," Villas-Boas said at the post-match press conference. We let the game go 10 minutes before the end of regulation time. This is my responsibility. This defeat irritates me, my staff, the club - all of us. 10 minutes before the final whistle we had everything to progress, but a couple of mistakes and we lost control, while the visitors worked very well. Both teams had their chances during the meeting. We could have made the score 3:1, but in the end we lost. Naturally, this should not have happened. I am extremely disappointed. That's my fault".
However, the Portuguese head coach of Zenit is confident that the defeat from Arsenal and 120 minutes of difficult play will not affect the condition of the St. Petersburg team in the match with CSKA on Saturday:
“Of course, we are all waiting for CSKA, but this is a different story, since this will be a championship match, where Zenit is now in the lead. We need to get together and discuss mistakes. Clearly, our situation is not ideal now. Everything would be ideal if we made it to the quarterfinals. However, a different story awaits us in Moscow. Now it’s important to recover psychologically, to regain concentration, but at the same time, you can’t throw the last match out of your head so as not to repeat the mistakes.”
Tula Gunners coach Dmitry Alenichev, whose team has not won once in 11 rounds of the Russian Championship and scored only three goals, hopes that Arsenal will now break through.
“To be honest, my voice lost,” admitted Alenichev. When we came across Zenit, I was happy, because it is from this level that opponents gain invaluable experience. Games like today, especially for our football players, remain in the memory for a lifetime. This is a very memorable moment for the guys. I am glad that the team played relaxed, was not afraid of the Zenit stars, played a very entertaining match and showed high-quality football. She had many scoring chances, just like her opponent. Maybe to some extent we were lucky, because we were losing 2:0, and Zenit had to bring the match to victory. The guys showed fighting qualities. And extra time is a lottery, since the opponents play when they are tired. We were lucky that we were able to catch Zenit on the counterattack. I thank the guys for the wonderful evening that we gave to the Tula and, I hope, St. Petersburg fans. Now I am 99 percent sure that after this match Arsenal will gain points in the championship. I think a victory in St. Petersburg will give us confidence.”
The Arsenal players, naturally, were in a completely different mood than their counterparts from Zenit. A graduate of the Zenit Academy, defender Andrei Vasiliev said in a conversation with reporters that he feels special pleasure and a storm of emotions from winning in his hometown. Indeed, it seemed that Vasiliev was still mentally on the field.
“This cannot be put into words! It’s very nice to beat your home club at your home stadium, in your city. With such a score, and even in a match with the best team in the country, it is difficult to escape, but we found the strength to play our game from below. We took advantage of Zenit's mistakes in defense and showed character, which allowed us to win. It didn’t seem to me that the owners relaxed. Zenit is very strong, it’s hard to play against them. Of course, we have a desire to compete for the Russian Cup. We play to win every match. Regardless of who is against us - Zenit or Gazovik. Were the players promised increased bonuses for the victory over Zenit? No comments!".
According to Arsenal defender Sergei Sukharev, the Premier League leader relaxed with the score 2:0.
“Amazing gaming experience! We beat the currently strongest team in the Russian championship. I think our victory is deserved. We won through character, dedication and, of course, goals scored. Probably, the Zenit players began to feel imposing. Still, 2:0 is a comfortable score. We didn't expect to miss it. Why do many football players at Arsenal grow beards, like in hockey? So our playoffs are starting now too. Can Arsenal win the Russian Cup? Anything can happen!”
Tula Gunners midfielder Vladislav Ryzhkov, like his coach Dmitry Alenichev, hopes for a rise in the championship after a strong-willed victory over Zenit in the Russian Cup:
“It’s impossible not to tune in to Zenit. On the contrary, they probably had problems with their mood today. It's clear. Our position in the Russian Championship speaks for itself. We had good chances to score in the first half, and the outcome was fantastic, of course. While I have only emotions, it’s difficult to comment on anything. Everyone wants to show a good game in St. Petersburg, and we succeeded. If you watch matches involving Arsenal, you've seen that we create a lot of scoring chances, but we just can't capitalize on them. Perhaps there is not enough class, but we are growing, I think we will break through in the championship.”
The main sensation of the game weekend in the RFPL occurred in St. Petersburg, where Zenit lost to Arsenal Tula - 0:1.
First time
This match, like all others in the 13th round, began with a minute of silence in memory of Zenit sports director Konstantin Sarsania. The Blue-White-Blues themselves played today wearing mourning armbands.
The game itself in the first half turned out to be extremely dull and inexpressive. Roberto Mancini's team started the meeting at high speeds, but this is a distinctive feature of the Italian team, which is turned on by default. It was not possible to extract anything intelligible from the speed of action. Moreover, Zenit did not have a territorial advantage as such. It’s not in the style of Bozovic’s teams to set up a bus. Therefore, Arsenal also attacked.
The first of two dangerous chances in the half came in the 12th minute. Shatov cut a pass to the far corner of the goalkeeper's area to Kokorin, who threw the ball to Driussi, and Sebastian headed it just above the goal! In the Zenit game, a lot of things came down to long passes to the opening Kokorin and Driussi. But everything that the St. Petersburgers created was too readable.
Tula also had little success in attack: the hosts’ defense worked conscientiously, and the “gunners” lacked the precision of small movements in order to create problems at Lunev’s goal. The result of all this is 0 shots on target. But the championship leader was still accurate once. In the 40th minute, Erokhin decided to take a long-range shot, and it took Gabulov a lot of effort to pull the “round” out from under the post to his left! With a relatively calm game, the teams went for a break, and, to be honest, there were no signs of a radical change in the game.
Second half
And to some extent it happened. Mancini replaced Shatov with Dzyuba, the scheme changed, and Zenit’s mood too. Almost immediately, the “blue-white-blues” organized a scoring attack: Criscito crossed from a set piece to the left offside line, from where Ivanovich shot into Gabulov’s goal. 1:0? No! Offside, and two meters. The team of referees worked accurately, and the Serbian himself seemed to understand that he was closer to the goal than the last defender.
Five minutes later Sebastian Driussi got another chance. After Smolnikov's cross, the Argentine forward headed in from close range and missed again. In those minutes, Zenit gained an impressive territorial advantage, which was then reinforced by Miodrag Bozovic. Yes, yes, there is no mistake - at the beginning of the final third of the match, the Arsenal coach replaced striker Igor Shevchenko with Henri Hagush, who plays more often in defense.
A little later, Mancini replied: Leandro Paredes instead of Daler Kuzyaev. Yes, we needed fresh forces in the center of the field. In the 68th minute, Zenit scored the second goal - and again after a set-piece, and again offside! This time Dzyuba scored, and he ended up in the wrong position. Here the Zenit coaches surrounded the reserve referee, but the replay showed us all that this goal was canceled legally.
But after 6-7 minutes something unexpected and almost incredible happened. A quick counterattack by Arsenal, Kirill Kombarov from the right flank cut a gorgeous diagonal into the area of the left corner of the goalkeeper, where Lunev tried to get to the ball, but in vain - Kangwa was closer to the projectile, and it was he who struck the shot past the goalkeeper and right into the goal - 0: 1! At the beginning of the review it was written that Bozovic does not really like “buses” - but after the goal was scored, it seemed that Graf had no choice but to change the scheme of his game to 10-0-0.
Zenit had only one chance over the next ten minutes, when Kokorin entered the penalty area from the right and shot wide. Then at Arsenal, Grigalava replaced Alvarez, and at Zenit, Poloz replaced Erokhin. Moreover, the St. Petersburg replacement turned out to be quite funny. Erokhin did everything to quickly leave the field, but Mancini had not yet had time to explain to Poloz what he should do.
By the way, Dmitry could have scored with his first touch after Smolnikov’s throw - the ball came off his foot and flew past the left post. About four minutes before the end of regular time, Ilya Maksimov came on instead of Goran Causic.
Match results
This is what we didn’t expect, we really didn’t expect it. One shot on target – one goal. Arsenal Tula is becoming a specialist in championship leaders. First Krasnodar, now Zenit. This is how you can get to the European Cup zone. Of course, it was not without a huge amount of luck that Bozovic’s team took their three points. But St. Petersburg residents have themselves to blame. Until Arsenal set up a bus outside their penalty area, there were chances. In the second half, when we switched to total defense, it was less, but the crosses to the Dzyuba area should have worked. Did not work out. And now the intrigue flares up with renewed vigor, because CSKA has come close to Lokomotiv and Zenit. The hotter the derby between the two capitals will be next week!
Zenit suffered its first defeat in the RFPL since May 7 from Arsenal Tula. The misfire of Roberto Mancini’s team was analyzed especially for “Sport Day by Day” by Nikolai Vorobyov, ex-defender of the blue-white-blue, champion of the USSR-1984, who was part of the coaching staff of the blue-white-blue for ten years.
1. Several players from the main Zenit squad remained on the bench
This can easily be explained by past national team matches. Players from national teams return in different states. We are talking about psychology, and about physical condition, and about playing tone. The club's coaching staff has the opportunity to evaluate all this during training. Of course, this is taken into account. Don’t forget about medical examinations, which are also carried out after the arrival of players from the national teams. All this is taken into account when choosing the composition. There are, of course, some tactical nuances. Arsenal's playing style and the upcoming Europa League match had to be taken into account. So there was also a strategic component.
2. In the attack, the St. Petersburg team acted less aggressively than usual
This is also due to the fact that many players have returned from national teams. I would call their condition not disassembled, but different. Someone arrived tired after a heavy workload. Some, on the contrary, sat on the bench and lowered their playing tone. Plus, national teams have completely different requirements: both playing and mental. If we talk more specifically about the Argentines, then they had a long, difficult flight. This also affects the condition of the players. In a sense, Zenit's defeat is the result of the national team matches.
3. The goals of Branislav Ivanovic and Artem Dzyuba were not counted due to offsides
In my opinion, it was clearly visible that both Ivanovich and Dzyuba climbed slightly behind the defensive line, finding themselves in an offside position. Dzyuba, by the way, was a good replacement. Dmitry Poloz also had a good chance immediately after appearing on the lawn, but simply missed the ball. And Leandro Paredes fit into the game well. Made some good passes and set pieces. However, there was no integrity in Zenit's game; there was fragmentation. The attack lacked speed and the ball moved slowly. There were not enough aggravating actions by the players. Unlike the same Arsenal.
4. Arsenal carried out one of the few counter-attacks
If you look at how the Tula team plays in the last rounds, there are significantly more victories than defeats. And this is not just like that, this is a consequence of the game that the team has been preaching lately. We see good organization, excellent discipline and the players' self-confidence, which is also very important in football. Well, the ideal combination that led to the goal being scored left virtually no chance for the hosts to cope with this moment. The blue-white-blues played at a fairly high level in defense. Except for that very counterattack of the Tula people.
She silenced the Zenit players. Some of them refused post-match comments, some pretended not to hear requests for interviews. Some did not reach the mixed zone at all, leaving the stadium via a roundabout route. Indeed, such a powerful blow to pride! Zenit has not won a single trophy in the last two seasons, so even relegation from the Russian Cup is extremely unpleasant. “What is there to talk about?” – he threw up his hands in disappointment Vyacheslav Malafeev, whom his teammates left to be torn to pieces by the opposing attackers. ventured to base Hulk, Ezequiel Garay, Axel Witsel, despite the fact that in the next six days Zenit will face battles with CSKA and Bayer. Did not help.
“Today’s result is a big shock for us,” . We let the game go 10 minutes before the end of regulation time. This is my responsibility. This defeat irritates me, my staff, the club - all of us. 10 minutes before the final whistle we had everything to progress, but a couple of mistakes and we lost control, while the visitors worked very well. Both teams had their chances during the meeting. We could have made the score 3:1, but in the end we lost. Naturally, this should not have happened. I am extremely disappointed. That's my fault".
Nevertheless, the Portuguese head coach of Zenit is confident that the defeat from Arsenal and 120 minutes of difficult play will not affect the condition of the St. Petersburg team in the match with CSKA on Saturday:
“Of course, we are all waiting for CSKA, but this is a different story, since this will be a championship match, where Zenit is now in the lead. We need to get together and discuss mistakes. Clearly, our situation is not ideal now. Everything would be ideal if we made it to the quarterfinals. However, in Moscow a different story awaits us. Now it’s important to recover psychologically, to regain concentration, but at the same time, you can’t throw the last match out of your head so as not to repeat the mistakes.”
The mentor of the Tula Gunners, whose team has not won once in 11 rounds of the Russian Championship and scored only three goals.
“To be honest, my voice lost,” admitted Alenichev. – When we came across Zenit, I was happy, because it is from this level that opponents gain invaluable experience. Games like today, especially for our football players, remain in the memory for a lifetime. This is a very memorable moment for the guys. I am glad that the team played relaxed, was not afraid of the Zenit stars, played a very entertaining match and showed high-quality football. She had many scoring chances, just like her opponent. Maybe to some extent we were lucky, because we were losing 2:0, and Zenit had to bring the match to victory. The guys showed fighting qualities. And extra time is a lottery, since the opponents play when they are tired. We were lucky that we were able to catch Zenit on the counterattack. I thank the guys for the wonderful evening that we gave to the Tula and, I hope, St. Petersburg fans. Now I am 99 percent sure that after this match Arsenal will gain points in the championship. I think a victory in St. Petersburg will give us confidence.”
The Arsenal players, naturally, were in a completely different mood than their counterparts from Zenit. A graduate of the Zenit Academy, defender Andrei Vasiliev said in a conversation with reporters that he feels special pleasure and a storm of emotions from winning in his hometown. Indeed, it seemed.
“This cannot be put into words! It’s very nice to beat your home club at your home stadium, in your city. With such a score, and even in a match with the best team in the country, it is difficult to escape, but we found the strength to play our game from the bottom. We took advantage of Zenit's mistakes in defense and showed character, which allowed us to win. It didn’t seem to me that the owners relaxed. Zenit is very strong, it’s hard to play against them. Of course, we have a desire to compete for the Russian Cup. We play to win every match. Regardless of who is against us - Zenit or Gazovik. Were the players promised increased bonuses for the victory over Zenit? No comments!".
According to the Arsenal defender Sergei Sukharev, the leader of the Premier League relaxed with the score 2:0.
“Amazing gaming experience! We beat the currently strongest team in the Russian championship. I think our victory is deserved. We won due to character, dedication and, of course, goals scored. Probably, the Zenit players began to feel imposing. Still, 2:0 is a comfortable score. We didn't expect to miss it. Why do many football players at Arsenal grow beards, like in hockey? So our playoffs are starting now too. Can Arsenal win the Russian Cup? Anything can happen!”
Midfielder of the Tula Gunners Vladislav Ryzhkov just like his coach, he hopes for a rise in the championship after a strong-willed victory over Zenit in the Russian Cup:
“It’s impossible not to tune in to Zenit. On the contrary, they probably had problems with their mood today. It's clear. Our position in the Russian Championship speaks for itself. We had good chances to score in the first half, and the outcome was fantastic, of course. While I have only emotions, it’s difficult to comment on anything. Everyone wants to show a good game in St. Petersburg, and we succeeded. If you watch matches involving Arsenal, you have seen that we create a lot of scoring chances, but we simply cannot use them. Perhaps there is not enough class, but we are growing, I think we will break through in the championship.”