Zenit head coach Sergei Semak explained the choice of the starting lineup for the match of the tenth round of the MIR Russian Premier League (RPL) with Krasnodar.

The meeting will take place on Saturday in Krasnodar and will begin at 19:30 (Moscow time).

— We are preparing for an interesting match in which the leaders of the RPL meet. We are waiting for an interesting game.

— Does Krasnodar’s winning streak of six games somehow puzzle or stress you?

— No, every team has successful or unsuccessful series. The most important thing is to cover the entire distance as steadily as possible.

— Why did you choose Mantuan and Alip?

— As for Mantuan, there are two reasons. He performed well in the last game and deserves a place in the starting line-up. Plus, during the preparation for the match, Vyacheslav Karavaev had some minor problems, so they decided to give Mantuan an opportunity. Alip also looks good, so he got his chance to start the game from the first minutes.

— What will be Zenit’s main weapon in the match with Krasnodar?

– It’s hard to say. We need to maintain our level in all components. We prepare for everything and see which component becomes important.

— Could Glushenkov become such a “weapon”? Is he completely ready?

“He trained well this week and is ready.” Let’s see how much the period he spent away from matches will affect his game. Taking into account the training sessions and the importance of the match, we decided to release him in the starting lineup.

— “Zenith” is ready to play open football if necessary?

— We are always ready to play opening football. Let’s see how the opponent will act. We always prepare for a fast and active game, but this doesn’t always work out,” Semak said on Match TV.

You can watch the game “Krasnodar” – “Zenit” live on the Match TV channel, as well as on the websites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.