You spent last season on loan at Saint-Etienne. How was it? 

It was a good experience. The French championship is quite strong, quick and physical. I didn't spend a lot of time on the pitch, but that was the decision of the coach, who always kept in touch with me. I tried to prove myself and trained a lot, I did score four goals. 

Were all your goals from distance? 

There was a goal after a throw-in and I had a few chances from counterattacks. Like at Zenit, I was playing in central midfielder, sometimes I played on the left-hand side too. 

Soon we'll be playing Bordeaux, can you tell us about this team?

I did play against them in France, Bordeaux are a typical French team, fast attacks at speed, often attacking down the flanks. I think we are ready for such a game. 

This season Zenit have not looked themselves in some games against teams we should perform well against, for example, in Minsk and Makhachkala. Bordeaux are in last place. Is it possible to underestimate them?

No, we won't relax. Before each match, the coach has told us how important each game is. Mentally, we are always ready, although in Minsk and Makhachkala we really looked bad. If we had won those games, we would not have used so much energy in the Europa League, nor in the Russian championship, where we would have created an even bigger gap. But it happened. We will continue to prepare for our next match, without lowering our concentration. Bordeaux are a tough opponent, otherwise they wouldn't be in the group stage.

The most exciting Zenit games this season have been the home game with Dinamo Minsk and the recent wins over Lokomotiv Moscow and Krasnodar. They were great games, but energy consuming. Is it possible to play like this in modern football, or will there be some payback from this?

We are constantly observed by the coaches and the team's doctors. They know which players are in what condition and based on this, they decide who should play and how. We are Zenit, which means we always compete at the highest levels. But sometimes things don't go our way, that happens in football. 

How far can Zenit go in the Europa League? 

We take each game as it comes and I see no reason to doubt if we can reach the final or not. All the players want to win the Russian Cup, the Premier League and the Europa League. But what matters is not what we think, but how we play. 

The full version of this interview will appear in the Pro Zenit matchday programme.