Pavel tells it like it is. That's the bottom line, we were too tense and this game had a huge psychological barrier. There's no need to call on the apocalypse because of this match.
It was visible on most of the players, especially on Molinaro(well not much of an excuse because he plain sucks), but most of all on our midfield duo, Sissoko and Poulsen. Sissoko got his act together though and actually was one of our best players on the pitch at the end, alongside Alex, but Poulsen was visibly fazed by the importance of the match and the competition. He made some amateur mistakes and his long range passing was below par. Not to mention the loss of Camoranesi early in the game...when you think about it we held out pretty well without our most important player in the midfield.
We should just how compact and strong in the midfield we are in the first two games of Serie A. We moved a lot and created a lot of chances. Those two matches were no coincedence,
this match was. Because of the psychological barrier for some of our key players and because of a great and highly motivated opponent. They were highly agressive and their midfielders simply choked us, it was incredible to watch how a team defends and attacks all together from start to finish. There are no individuals there, everyone works as a unit, even the star player Arshavin goes back to defend. Quite impressive IMO.
I'll admit I had underestimated Zenit, they are great team with incredible physical strength and fantastic individuals. Yesterday I expected more from Arshavin but luckily for us he didn't cause too many troubles. I was really impressed by Pogrebnyak, that guy is a bull and outmuscled pretty much everyone that he got in a duel with. But when I said there's no chance of us not qualifying, this is what I meant. Zenit can trouble us, cost us points, but at the end we have a clear advantage over them; experience and mental strength in such competitons. That's what's gonna get us through in this group; our selected individuals; Gigi, Ale, Nedved, Camo, Trez. Zenit are a young team, even though they're extremely talented, you need experience to go through in the CL. They don't have that.
Out of the match, I think you only need to single out 3 players; Chiellini, Ale and Sissoko.
Chiellini is on par with Cannavaro. From me, that's the highest praise a CB can get. He's amazing, there's no other way of putting it. Always on the right place, great in heading, tackling, doesn't make stupid fouls and clears the ball with ease. We have a jewel in our defense for years to come.
Sissoko, didn't function as well as the first two games with Poulsen, but at the end of it he really impressed. Great solo runs, though he sometimes overdoes himself, but most of all....work rate. This guy can run for 180minutes straight, without loosing a breath. The way he takes the ball from the opponent is sublime, he made an art out of it. I had goosebump everytime he won the ball and the whole stadium cheered on him. I love the guy, I really do, he's my MOM with Ale.
Alex...our national TV was showing the match yesterday and pretty much everyone was watching it. Believe me when I say, all of my high-school friends who either hated or loved him, were sms-ing me throughout the game. In a nutshell, the messages were; "kakva carcina!". Translated means "what a king/emperor" and in the local slang, that's pretty much the highest praise you can get. He was on great form yesterday, dribbling around defenders with ease and moving a lot. The goal was sublime, though it is the keepers fault most of all. It took C.Ronaldo a number of tries to pull of a curve like that, Ale did it at first.
The only downside to his game were some poorly taken corners and freekicks.
All in all, it was a below-average display compaired to our first two games in Serie-A, but the ice is broken now and we got the 3 points.
Buy on AliExpress.com
