Zenit fielded rotation players against Akhmat in the FONBET Russian Cup match. And if we compare the nearest reserve with Spartak’s, then the Muscovites have a similar rotation that is more successful. It is noteworthy that the strengthening of the “red-whites” in the cup match brought results – Promes and Martins helped defeat the opponent. And the Zenit leaders, having entered the field, did not help to improve. After the first half, Sergei Semak’s team won, but lost the second half.

Whatever Zenit’s rotation is, class is class. Moreover, the opponent did not let some of their leaders start. Losing 0:2, the team from St. Petersburg was able to not only equalize the score, but also take the lead. It’s even a little surprising that “Akhmat” didn’t break down after that, and found the opportunity after 2:3 to equalize the score again, and yet the guests already had many first-team players on the field at that moment. For the Grozny team, the result in a separate match was certainly good – in terms of the game, and in regulation time, they did not concede when fighting with the champion.

Open video

For Semak, this result is a reason for reflection. Zenit missed a lot – three goals for them is a lot. The club has the opportunity to make sure that the bench is strong; in principle, this was the case before. Surely the coaching staff and management will draw conclusions. If we talk about the tournament situation, the match was important for both teams. And, perhaps, the guests were more successful here – they got closer to Baltika and have a good chance of finishing the group stage in first place. As a last resort, in the final match they will set up the base. But “Akhmat” now has to fight with “Wings of the Soviets” in order not to leave the tournament at all.

Watch live broadcasts of FONBET Russian Cup matches on the Match TV and MATCH PREMIER TV channels, as well as on the websites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.