Zenit head coach Sergei Semak told Match TV that defender Mario Fernandez has no problems with being overweight and works in a common group with other team players.

The club from St. Petersburg on Monday announced the signing of a contract with Fernandez. The agreement with the 32-year-old football player is for one year with the possibility of extension for a season.

– What form is Mario Fernandez in?

“Let’s see how fast Mario will recruit it. The main problem is that he has not played for a long time. He needs to feel the game tone and enter a fairly intense training cycle. Otherwise, he has no problems. No extra weight and no other factors limiting his work. We hope that in the near future he will begin to work fully in the general group and in the next match he will come out and get some playing time.

– There was a lot of talk about why Zenit needs Mario Fernandez and how do you plan to use it?

– I have said more than once that if a situation arises when it is possible to invite a high-quality and strong player, we try to take advantage of it. The arrival of Mario Fernandez is a great opportunity to strengthen Zenit’s game. Mario can play in multiple positions. In the center of the defense, whether it’s a formation with two or three defenders. And, of course, he can play an attacking winger. I will note his ability to work well with the ball, the game on the second floor.

All this, of course, will add variability to us. And Aleksey Sutormin will return to a more familiar position (right midfielder – Match TV). A game of four defenders, where Sutormin played on the right – this happened only out of necessity, based on the fact that we did not have a second player in the position of the right defender. We are very glad that we have a strong player with a Russian passport. In my opinion, this is a good reinforcement for Zenit, a good acquisition, ”Semak told Match TV.

The new season of the MIR RPL starts on July 21 with the Dynamo-Krasnodar match. Match TV will show live three matches of the first round: Lokomotiv – Rubin (July 22, 17:15), Akhmat – Sovetov Wings (July 22, 19:45) and Sochi – Baltika (July 23, 19:45). Zenit in the starting round on July 22 will play on the road with PARI NN.