“It wasn’t Zenit that played badly, but CSKA didn’t let them show their football” – Nepomniachtchi

Russian coach Valery Nepomnyashchy believes that CSKA played competently against Zenit in the match of the 20th round of the WORLD RPL, so it deservedly won.

On Sunday, CSKA beat Zenit at home in the 20th round of the WORLD RPL with a score of 1:0.

— CSKA was a very pleasant surprise, especially in the first half. There were several ingredients to a good game. Firstly, the Muscovites entered the game very quickly and with their pressure did not allow Zenit to play the ball. Secondly, in the transitional phases, the army team played very balanced – they moved the ball very quickly, while the St. Petersburg team did not have time to rebuild. Thirdly, psychologically CSKA was stronger: Zenit created the first dangerous moment in the 35th minute, when Akinfeev played superbly, thereby charging the partners with confidence even more.

In the moment with the goal, luck was on the side of CSKA. But Muscovites have earned this luck – it just doesn’t come. Zenit tried to improve its game, but the army team switched to the game by score and skillfully deprived the opponent of their trump cards. I want to emphasize that it was not Zenit that played badly, but CSKA did not allow the Petersburgers to show their football.

I liked the definition of the line-up for the game. Now Fedotov understands who is really ready to play at the start today. If we talk about legionnaires, it seems to me that Carrascal is a player of deep reserve, and Medina is the other way around. He is at the right time in the right place – and this shows the understanding that without movement and without dedication, he will not have a place in the composition. Now CSKA is forming a high-quality and optimal starting lineup, – Nepomniachtchi is quoted by the Championship.

Zenit is leading the Russian Championship with 48 points. CSKA (35) is fifth. In the next round, the team of Sergei Semak will host the Yekaterinburg “Ural” on April 1. The next day, the Red-Blues will meet Fakel Voronezh on the road.

Watch live broadcasts of MIR RPL matches on the Match TV channel and the thematic channels of the holding, as well as on matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru websites.