“As long as there is a chance, we will fight for our coat of arms” – Zainutdinov about the Kazakhstan national team in the Euro 2024 selection

Midfielder of the Kazakhstan national team Bakhtiyor Zainutdinov summed up the results of the match with Finland in the qualifying stage of Euro 2024.

Koanda of Kazakhstan beat Finland away with a score of 2:1, Zainutdinov scored a double.

— The first half was very difficult, nothing worked for us. During the break, Magomed Musaevich (Adiev) found the right words. He energizes us very much. We have a dream – to reach the Euro, we could not lose today. As long as there is a chance, we will fight for our coat of arms.

Have I overtaken Baltiev in goals for the national team? Ruslan Takhirovich promised to take me to a restaurant, I’m looking forward to a good dinner and delicious barbecue (laughs). I’d rather take him to a restaurant; after all, I respect my elders. Honestly, at the age of 18 I couldn’t even dream of this. I am proud to represent Kazakhstan.

Northern Ireland vs Slovenia match? I’ll definitely watch the game, the rest of the guys are flying to Astana at night. “I plan to fly to Istanbul tomorrow,” Zainutdinov told Meta‑ratings.kz.

The team of Russian coach Magomed Adiev scored 15 points, is in third place in Group H and still has a chance to qualify for the main tournament of the European Championship. The Finnish team (12) is fourth. The Kazakhstan team has two matches left in the Euro 2024 qualifying tournament: on November 17, the team will host San Marino, and on November 20, they will play away against Slovenia.

Watch live broadcasts of matches of the Euro 2024 qualifying tournament on the Match TV channel and thematic channels of the holding, as well as on the websites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.