Sergey Semak: “No satisfaction from the match”

After Zenit`s 0-0 tie with Terek, the Zenit halfback commented on how the match went and gave his respect to the opponent.

– You always want to win, – says Sergey Semak. – We wanted to win today too. But I wouldn`t say that we only deserved to win in today`s match. I agree that a tie is a fair result. But there`s no satisfaction after such a match. You can only have a good mood after you win. As for our Russian Premier League goals, nothing bad happened. We have to get ready for our next match, which is just 4 days away. We definitely have to beat Saturn. That will get our mood up.

– So are you saying that Zenit didn`t deserve to win today?
– We didn`t create that many opportunities in Terek`s goal. One of the reasons for that is the field: we haven`t played on artificial turf for a long time, and it took us a long time to get used to that surface. Another thing is that it`s already fall in Petersburg, while here in Grozny we came to real hot summer weather. And let`s not forget our tough match with Anderlecht. All that together meant that we weren`t as fresh as usual.

– Terek hasn`t lost on its home field this year, and the team looks good overall, and even has a chance to make it into the European cup zone this year. What do you think, what`s the secret of Terek`s success?
– I give them credit. Terek never loses at home, even when they play against the strongest teams in Russia. I think that`s mainly thanks to the mood in the team, the players themselves, and their coach, who was able to explain to the players what he wants from them.

– Zenit plays quite often now. Will the players have enough strength to play in such a stressful schedule?
– Well, clearly it`s not easy, but we`ve got enough time between matches for me, at least, to recover. All the more so considering that we’ve got a good, balanced team. One player can always replace another at every position.