We started the game well and managed to score an early goal. In the first half we were not as attacking as we would have liked, but we controlled the game well, although there were a lot of mistakes and that allowed Rubin to put pressure on our goal. They are strong with set pieces and their throw-ins and corners were a big danger. Overall, we did well, with the exception of a few moments where we didn’t play as we would have liked. In the second half we were able to score some good goals, both quick attacks from wide, it was a solid, good and hard-earned win. We have no time to celebrate as our next away game is in the Cup in two days. We will rest and prepare for the next match.
How would you rate your team after the two week break?
Every manager is cautious when the league resumes after a break, especially those managers who has a lot of players away on international duty. There are a lot of problems with this, some can arrive tired, like Alip who played two full games. Some, like Cassierra and Barrios, didn’t play much, but had long flights.
Zenit are second after Sochi in the charts for being offside. Have you had any individual conversations with the attackers to be more careful with this?
That’s OK and I think it’s a good indicator. The stats represent attacking play and if the players are attacking and going forward, offsides will happen. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that and we’ve not had a talk about this.
Alexander Medvedev recently said that Zenit will be making a sensational transfer. Was this referring to Wilson Isidor?
No. I think Alexander Medvedev meant Barboskin, the cartoon series, which we’ve recently signed a deal with. (laughs).
Is there a chance of any other players joining you, maybe who are free agents?
There is a possibility, we do have the opportunity to add another player to the squad, could be a foreigner. We’ll see what happens, although it’s unlikely.
