The central match of the fifth day of the Russian Premier League was the confrontation between Spartak Moscow and Zenit. The match that took place yesterday at the Otkritie Arena ended with a score of 1:3 in favor of the guests. And already traditionally we are talking about controversial arbitration. After the game, many rojiblancos players complained about Sergei Karasev’s work, pointing out that his work was not objective.
In an exclusive interview with Sovetsky Sport, former FIFA referee Igor Zakharova assessed the level of refereeing in the match, answered whether the penalty was awarded correctly and whether the St. Petersburg team was really being judged biased.
– How can you generally assess the work of Sergey Karasev’s brigade in the party? Didn’t the judges in the main match of the tour at least spoil the game?
Andrei Anosov / “Sovsport”
– I will say that Seryozha was very lucky. Overall it worked out well, but there weren’t too many really contentious moments in the game. Yes, there was a penalty, and it is quite difficult to understand something else. In the match between Spartak and Zenit there were not a lot of controversial episodes to analyze. With the exception of a penalty and a couple of very small moments, everything was on the same level. I think after the game everyone should have been satisfied. Everything was clear and consistent. Soccer was interesting, but the referee’s fault that she was interesting is also there. In the sense that she didn’t mess it up.
– One of the main points in terms of arbitration was a penalty against Zenit in the second half, was it signaled correctly? Or is this the wrong decision?
Andrei Anosov / “Sovsport”
– As for me, before the penalty was awarded, a foul in attack had to be fixed. And, accordingly, it was impossible to name him in such a case. In addition, there was a video review, Seryozha himself went to see the VAR. I would also like to note that so far with 11 meters, no questions have arisen for Karasev.
– At the end of the game, many were outraged by the fact that the St. Petersburg team was frankly stretching out time. In such cases, judges are often reproached for ignoring or adding too little. Did Karasev correctly understand the situation?
Andrei Anosov / “Sovsport”
– Everyone worked well in terms of time adjustment, seven minutes were added, that is, they compensated for everything that Zenit was dragging. Quite a yellow card received Claudinho. Here, I think there can be no questions. This is a standard situation for soccer, you win and you play for time. In this case, the judge just needs to deal with someone who, frankly, drags everything out for a long time and adds a sufficient number of minutes, which Karasev did.
– After the match, many Spartak players spoke about the controversial refereeing, and it is not the first time that Zenit’s rivals have complained about the referees after matches. Is it possible to say that Petersburg is really often in demand?
– It’s nothing to talk about. Complete fiction. Brazilians are Brazilians, most of them play for Zenit, they are top-class players. Accordingly, most of the league’s defenders simply do not keep up with them, so there are more fouls in the matches of the St. Petersburg team, that’s all. And what they say about some kind of biased arbitration, well, let them say, in reality there is no such thing at all.
