Vyacheslav, Zenit unexpectedly lost to Rubin on Wednesday. Will this defeat give extra motivation to the team?
Without a doubt it will. It’s always upsetting when you lose, so everyone is focused on the upcoming match against Dynamo now. It’s an incredibly important game, especially after a defeat. All of the players were disappointed and even a bit irritated when they lost, so I think it will give us a mental boost on Sunday.
There are only five rounds left until the end of the season as well as the Russian Cup matches. What would you say about the team’s physical condition at the moment?
Everything is fine. I wouldn’t say that we have any issues with our physical condition, it’s just that the luck wasn’t always on our side. Our low quality performance does have a reason, but it’s definitely not our physical condition.
Dynamo are the team Zenit face more often this season. What are your thoughts on the opponent?
They’re a team that competes for the title, therefore we have a difficult game ahead of us. They’ve been quite successful this season. They’ve had a couple of setbacks, but it happens to everyone. Overall they’re a tough opponent.
Have you discussed the match against Rubin with your teammates?
Obviously we have. We met up as a team and talked about it. Yes, we did lose that match, but the most important part of it is our reaction to this defeat. We’ll try our best to show it in our next game.
