Only the second defeat of St. Petersburg in RPL-2022/23.
Firmness in intentions, but not in legs
Undoubtedly, the most impressive part of the match was the opening part. First half hour. In this period CSKA dominated in such a way that it was difficult to imagine how great Zenit’s lead was over everyone else in the league. There was no such feeling. Petersburgers managed to control the ball more often, but this happened under constant onslaught and pressure from the army team.
It turned out that the first half hour of the meeting ended with 60% possession of the ball by Zenit, but with a score of 5:0 on shots in favor of CSKA. Two of these five shots hit Kerzhakov’s target, which immediately went into tone. At the same time, it should be understood that the pressure from the army did not look cold-blooded and prudent. It was more exciting. Hence the low percentage of ball possession and low pass accuracy – only 70 percent. There was a feeling of high spirits, but little self-confidence. And this determined the nature of the pressure.
Fedotov’s idea with a trident at the tip of the attack generally worked. Zabolotny, Chalov and Medina penetrated well into the ranks of the Zenit troops and went into a shock position, confusing the enemy and pressing him. But this, again, is the emotional component of mood. A component of nervousness led to the fact that Medina did not use very good opportunities to open an account.
And in general, with all this onslaught and blows, it seemed like the players CSKA they simply forgot how to hit, which personified the general chaos of the team’s season. Bringing the game to Kerzhakov’s gates, they forgot how to correctly and firmly put their foot to strike. So the assault was an assault, but its zero exhaustion had its own reasons, which lay not at all in the fact that Zenit somehow defended itself especially reliably, but in the fact that the army squad could not break through in an accentuated way and remember the attack.
Lost opportunities
It should be noted that the cut-off who completed undivided possession CSKA the initiative was the replacement of the army in the center of defense. The risk with the exit of Diveev, who had just recovered from an injury, did not justify himself. Already at the beginning of the match he was writhing in pain and discomfort, he played for half an hour and just lay down on the grass.
After his replacement and the release of Nababkin, only the psychological mood of the army went astray. And “Zenith” felt it, leveling the game. 15 minutes from the end of recovery time, Zenit scored six shots, including one on one following a clean exit from Cassierra. Akinfeev saved there. And it is unlikely that now we would talk about the logic of victory CSKA, then hit the striker past the goalkeeper. On the same segment CSKA there were only three hits, but at least two were among the most dangerous in the game. Chalov and Zabolotny missed good opportunities to retire CSKA forward. Even if Cassierra’s time had already passed.
In short, the end of the first half could make a decisive contribution to the outcome of the match. But the decision on the fate of the match was postponed to the second half.
Lucky shot
The second half as a whole turned out to be chaotic and lacked a well-defined structure. Semak tried during the break to adjust the scheme in such a way as to neutralize the group of Chalov, Zabolotny and Medina, and at the same time aggravate the actions of his team. To do this, Chistyakov entered the central defense third, replacing the flank Karavaev. It is difficult to say what effect such a restructuring had, since there was no qualitative improvement in Zenit’s game.
Yes, Medina disappeared from the radar against the background of the initial sharpness. But he stopped being active at the end of the first half. But Chalov and Zabolotny continued to cause trouble, albeit to a lesser extent. Perhaps the shooting statistics will be indicative, according to which, in more than 45 minutes of the second half, the teams took as many shots as in the last 15 minutes of the first half. Zenit again had six tries and CSKA – Three. At the same time, Zenit’s possession rose to 68%. Scoring also played here, which has already become in favor of the army team.
And it became so thanks to Chalov’s long-range shot. He didn’t seem particularly strong or dangerous. And it came at such a time as teams soured and bogged down in slow football in center field. There may have been no goal, but Santos’ shoulder bounce sent the ball into the corner.
Semak’s attempts to somehow shake up the game with substitutions didn’t really work. However, in the last few minutes, when CSKA he finally gave the initiative and hung on, the guests had a couple of chances. Cassierra hit the post after a corner, winning the fight, and Sutormin from behind the corner of the summer goalkeeper struck over the crossbar. By the way, throughout the second half Zenit, which had to be saved, never hit the target. And in terms of the match as a whole, the Petersburgers have only one shot against seven CSKA.
Such football can hardly be called high-quality. Both teams had many marriages and mistakes in attack design. Only at some point did Chalov’s luck smile. The fate of the meeting was decided not by the struggle with the opponent, but by the struggle with one’s own inability to make a normal shot on goal. By the way, win this fight CSKA only the rebound helped. Well anyway. In any case, it is a special victory for the army team, as they have failed to defeat Zenit in eight games since 2018.
And for potential intrigue in the championship, such an outcome will be beneficial. For Zenit it is only the second defeat of the season. RPL, which perhaps also played a role: Semak’s team has too much margin ahead of all competitors. It’s hard to keep yourself in good shape under such conditions.
