The defending champions held their second match in a week on their home field. And the match against Rostov opened the RPL season. They put on an impressive show with more than 90 performers, placed a birthday ribbon in the centre circle, in general everything made for a great match.
And then Valery Karpin went on air. He said that playing in such weather with the roof closed is “the delusions of a madman.” This quote immediately sparked a lot of discussion: maybe the Petersburgers demoralize their opponents in this way? The club explained that the decision was made in advance due to the weather conditions. And no one objected. In the middle of the first half, it started to rain heavily in the city. So the story about the roof was definitely justified.
More on Karpin’s words:
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“These decisions are sabotage for football.” Karpin gave a powerful speech to Zenit
The coaches did not make any changes to the starting line-ups compared to previous matches. Karpin, to the surprise of some, again let Komlichenko lead, leaving Golenkov on the reserve side. At least he had a great performance against the “Wings” and scored a great goal. Semak had something unexpected – the appearance of Pedro in the second match in a row. And Mostovoy remained on the reserve side.
Zenit has traditionally had a good start. High pressure, advantage in possession – in fact, the Donetsk team quickly got into their own half and waited for chances. But it was not possible to score quickly. And from about the 10th minute, Rostov rose and tried to put pressure on. It was a little surprising to see something like this. Ronaldo even scored in the 14th minute. But he was not very successful. And then it was time for the reigning champions.
Cassierra was initially one-on-one, but his shot was saved by the goalkeeper. Then everything went off the rails. In the 18th minute, Glushenkov took advantage of Pedro’s chance and fired it towards goal. He ran into the box from a corner and did not miss.
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And a few minutes later, Maxim scored himself. And what a beautiful goal! Cassierra took the ball in front of the box, threw it to his teammate, who kicked it just behind the goalkeeper.
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But they didn’t stop there either. Seven minutes later, Wendel broke through the flank and headed straight for Cassierra. All he had to do was get there.
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And then… Glushenkov again. The opponent’s defense was simply destroyed with passes and Maxim went one-on-one. He beat the goalkeeper and mockingly put it into the empty net. Karpin watched all this with an ironic smile. And it is true, as they joke on Telegram channels, apparently Glushenkov will soon decide whether to call Valery Georgievich to the national team or not.
Valery Karpin
Photo by: RIA Novosti
At that moment, Zenit’s dominance was interrupted. Rostov were allowed to rest a little until the end of the half and then during the break. Semak took Claudinho off the field, who has scored 0 goals so far this season, and released Gorshkov. Douglas moved up to the support zone, but the formation remained the same. But there was also less aggression. The opponent was allowed to play a little football. And at the same time they missed chances. First, Wendel missed the goal and fell before the shot, then Glushenkov failed to block the cross with his heel.
But Zenit’s current leader wasn’t going to leave the pitch without scoring a hat-trick. And he did, firing home again from distance.
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Then came two shots on goal and a couple of good attacks from Rostov, which ended in Latyshonka. Zenit’s new number one is still giving no reason to doubt. Third game to zero in the RPL.
But for Glushenkov there are only two questions: when will he be called up to the national team and what kind of lion is this tiger?
