Valery Karpin / Photo: © FC Rostov
Rostov head coach Valery Karpin said that before the start of the season he would not have believed that the team could get into the top 5 of the WORLD RPL standings.
On Sunday, Rostov defeated Grozny Akhmat at home in the match of the 29th round of the Russian Championship with a score of 3:2. Rostovites with 53 points take the fourth place in the standings.
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– No matter how this season ends, it still remains unexpected for us, something from the realm of fantasy. One phrase can be summarized: if someone told me before the start of the season that we would be in the top 5, I would twist it at my temple and say that this person is crazy. With all our problems with logistics, recovery, injuries, with a squad without foreigners, to say that we will be in the top five is something beyond.
The season is not over yet, but I can already thank all the players for their perseverance. You probably have no idea what it’s like to come back after a game sitting 6-7 hours on the bus and 4 hours on the plane. And even 13-14 hours by bus from Moscow, arriving at 10 in the morning in Rostov, you can’t even imagine what it is like, how else can you play football after this. Therefore, I want to thank all the players, fans, ”Match TV quotes Karpin.
In the final round, Rostov in Moscow will play with CSKA, which is second in the championship with 55 points. Third place with 54 points is taken by Spartak.
“Let’s prepare completely calmly. The medal race for us is an unexpectedly pleasant bonus. We are finishing the season without (forward Nikolai) Komlichenko and (defender Maxim) Osipenko, before that we were without (midfielder Daniil) Utkin, (defender Evgeny) Chernov and (forward Dmitry) Poloz, now without (midfielder Danil) Glebov because of the card, much worse. You always have to count on winning,” said Karpin.
Watch live broadcasts of MIR RPL matches on the Match TV and MATCH PREMIER channels, as well as on matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru websites.