Malcom irresistibly performed the bisicleta and finished off the Orenburg. It was the seventh ball into the opponent’s goal!
The layouts before the match between Zenit and Orenburg in the 9th round of the RPL were obvious. Petersburgers approached the game with the newcomers of the championship of Russia in the status of unconditional favorites. Moreover, not only the difference in the composition of the teams and their standings spoke in favor of the “blue-white-blues”, but also the field factor. Orenburgers had to go to the Gazprom Arena, where they were expected by the frenzied pressure of the stands.
The opponent was convenient for the champions and tactically. Under the leadership of Marcel Lichka, the provincial team plays open attacking football, and the Brazilian masters from Zenit show their best qualities in free space. And so it happened: to the delight of the public, Wendel and Malcolm literally destroyed their opponents.
The seventh goal against Orenburg already claims to be the best of the season.
Brazilian duo show
The intrigue in the Zenit match against Orenburg did not last long, if it could even be discussed before the game. The score in this confrontation was already opened in the 3rd minute, when Wendel, having received a pass from compatriot Santos, sent the ball into the far corner with a brilliant dribble.
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Already by the middle of the first half, things came to a rout (3:0): after the goals of Sergeyev and Kuzyaev, it became clear that Orenburg simply had nothing to oppose to their opponents. The guests frankly swam, and the hosts, on the contrary, caught the courage and did not want to let go of easy prey, deciding to squeeze the maximum out of the match.
It was the Brazilian duo of Wendel and Malcolm who helped bring the score to the indecent Zenith. In the 28th minute, the former Barcelona player scored himself, and some time later he gave an assist to a compatriot who gracefully shot from outside the penalty area.
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However, the Star Legionnaires were not going to stop there. In the second half, the Brazilians began to frankly fool around, but there was no one to punish them for their self-confidence. The seventh goal against Orenburg became the personification of the nightmare that the provincial guests of the Gazprom Arena had to endure.
This time, Wilmar Barrios acted as Malcom’s assistant, who noticed the opening of his colleague in time and addressed him with an accurate hinged pass into someone else’s penalty area. The Brazilian, in turn, perfectly chose the time for a breakthrough, avoiding offside, and ran behind the central defenders of Orenburg, remaining at a rendezvous with the goalkeeper. When the defense players turned around, Malcolm had already received the ball with his chest, standing with his back to the goal, and then … shot through himself from a short distance. The stunned goalkeeper could not do anything with the Brazilian and missed into the near corner.
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Malcolm’s goal could have been a great icing on the cake, but another Brazilian, Wendel, later put the final or, rather, funeral eighth ball into the Orenburg goal. However, the midfielder still failed to surpass his compatriot in showiness. So far, Malcolm can safely be called the author of the most beautiful goal in the 2022/23 season, but you still shouldn’t rush to reward the player. After all, Zenit still has to play against Orenburg in the second round – who knows what the Brazilian will throw next?
RPL world. 9th round
Zenit (St. Petersburg) – Orenburg (Orenburg) – 8: 0 (5:0)
Goals: Wendel, 3 (VIDEO), 44 (VIDEO), 68 (VIDEO). Sergeev, 17 (VIDEO). Kuzyaev, 19 (VIDEO). Malcom, 29 (VIDEO), 59 (VIDEO). Pavlovets, 51 (VIDEO).
