ex-president of CSKA - about the performance of the team in the Champions League. “It was better to lose to Real Madrid, but go to Le”
This autumn we will see CSKA in the Champions League 2018-2019. The Moscow team will participate in the most prestigious European club championship for the 6th time in a row. Who will be the rival of the red-blue? What does the schedule of games with the participation of the army club look like? And do Viktor Goncharenko's wards have a chance to get into the next stage of the tournament?
According to the results of the draw, the red-blues fell into group G. The rivals of the capital's PFC were the Spanish Real, the Czech Victoria and the Italian Roma. Muscovites will play their first meeting on September 19 against Victoria, and the last one on December 12 against Real Madrid. Here's what it looks like complete calendar capital club matches:
To reach the next stage of the Champions League, the army team must take 1st - 2nd place in their quartet. If they succeed, they will continue to play in the 1/8 playoffs of the tournament. The first round of knockout games will take place in February-March 2019.
Football CSKA rivals in the Champions League 2018/19
Let's take a closer look at the future football confrontations in quartet G with the participation of red-blue.
CSKA - Roma 2018
with one of the leaders Italian football Evgeny Giner's club will clash on October 23 and November 7.
The football team from Moscow had to play with the Romans four times. Two fights ended in triumph for the Italians, one ended in a draw and only once did the army team take over. The last time the two clubs were drawn was in the 2014/15 Champions League season. The Russians lost 1:5 in Rome. And in Moscow they were content with only a draw 1:1.
CSKA - Victoria 2018
The army team is already familiar with Victoria from the city of Pilsen. Capital football players played with the Czechs in group stage Champions League 2013/14. The home match ended with the victory of the Russians 3:2. But in the second leg, the players of "Victoria" were stronger 1:2.
CSKA - Real Madrid 2018
CSKA's toughest opponent in the 2018/19 Champions League group stage schedule. The Russian FC will meet the leader of Group G on October 2 at home and on December 12 away.
The "creamy" red-blues have already met twice in the 1/8 Champions League 2011/12. The home game ended in a 1-1 draw. But the away match ended with a convincing victory of Madrid 1:4.
CSKA's chances of qualifying from the group
Let's be honest, the chances are slim. Too big personnel losses were suffered by the army team in the offseason. The club has lost a number of base players. The midfield was particularly affected. It takes a long time to find a replacement for Natkho, Golovin and Wernbloom.
However, the chances of getting into the 1/8, though small, but they are. To qualify for the next round of the Champions League, players from Moscow must fulfill several conditions.
Firstly, it is mandatory to score the maximum number of points in games with Victoria. The team from the city of Pilsen is the weakest member of Quartet G. It will be extremely difficult to take away points from the rest of the opponents.
Secondly, you need to score points in matches with Roma. The Romans are the main competitors for the second place in Group G. Ideally, the Muscovites should win at home and not lose away. In this case, a ticket to the spring stage of the Champions League red-blue will be guaranteed!
The task is difficult. The team of Viktor Goncharenko will have to make serious efforts and even super efforts to get into the playoffs of the Champions League 2018/19. But the six-time champions of Russia taught us to win in the most difficult situations. Therefore, there is hope that they will surprise this time as well!
Benfica (Lisbon, Portugal)
A few hours before the start of the draw, in the text about the layouts of Benfica, it was called the best option for CSKA. And so it happened - apart from Shakhtar, the Portuguese look like the weakest team from the first pot.
Last season, Benfica became the champion of Portugal with a solid margin for the fourth time in a row, breaking away from Porto by six points. In the previous Champions League, the team also fell into a not very strong group, reached the playoffs and flew out from Borussia Dortmund.
The last time Benfica played with Russian teams was in 2014 - then both times the Portuguese lost to Zenit. For three years, the team has not changed much: there is still one of the best goalkeepers in the history of the Brazilian national team Julio Cesar, the captain is a huge defender Luisão, and in attack a powerful Jonas. In general, a solid Brazilian diaspora. In addition, the "soldiers" should be wary of two Greeks - top scorer Benfica Mitroglou and passer Samaris.
Since the year before last, 47-year-old Portuguese Rui Vitoria has been coaching the capital's club. When he was a footballer, he did not play anywhere above the third local division, but as a coach he won the Cup Portuguese league with Pacos de Ferreira and the Portuguese Cup with Vitoria.
Over the past 8 years, CSKA has met with Manchester United four times. The most memorable was Slutsky's first match at the club at Old Trafford, which ended 3-3. "CSKA" led 3:1 and missed the victory over the British in the last minutes. And in 2015, CSKA found Van Gaal in Manchester and was able to win only one point in two matches.
There is not much left of the Dutch team in the current Manchester. Lukaku, Pogba, Mata, Mkhitaryan, Martial - these players will need to be kept by Vasina and co. In addition, a couple of hours before the draw, Ibrahimovic announced that he was returning to the club: "I have to finish what I started." Apparently, Zlatan hinted at winning the Premier League (and the Champions League).
Jose Mourinho led Manchester United to the Champions League by beating Ajax in the Champions League final. The most memorable matches of the Portuguese coach against CSKA - with the golden "Inter" in the quarterfinals of the Champions League 2009/10. Then the Special beat the "soldiers" twice 1:0 - Milito and Sneijder scored - and won his next European title.
In the first two rounds of the Premier League, Manchester United goes with a 100% result - 4:0 with West Ham and 4:0 with Swansea. In England, Manchester United is called the main contender for the championship, so in Group A, the British are definitely the main favorite.
Basel (Basel, Switzerland)
One Swiss team "soldiers" have already knocked out. Basel are Swiss champions but not much better than Young Boys. For the last 9 years, the team has won gold in their homeland, but they have performed unsuccessfully in the Champions League. Last season, Basel fell into the group with Arsenal, PSG and Ludogorets and flew out of the tournament with two points.
In Basel, an old acquaintance of CSKA captains - ex-Spartak player Marek Suchy. For Czech former rival in the Premier League will only be an additional motivation. Two more well-known football players in Russia: the brother of Arsenal midfielder Granit Jaki Taulant and Ricky van Wolfswinkel, who scored a lot in Sporting.
From this season, Basel new coach- young Swiss Rafael Vicki. By the age of 40, he managed to train with Felix Magath, educate several generations in the youth teams and the Basel youth team and lead the main team. Vicky is only a couple of months younger than Viktor Goncharenko - a rarity for the Champions League.
The ex-president and coach of CSKA speaks about the historic victory of the army team over Real Madrid in the Champions League.
- What would you answer if, before the start of the Champions League, I asked you: “Do you believe in the victory of CSKA over“ ”?
Of course, in this situation, everyone in my place would bet on Real Madrid. But there was such a situation that in the second match, many youngsters entered the field in the second match, and they played the first 30 minutes of the meeting well. However, he survived and opened an account. After the goal, the stiffness in the actions of the army men disappeared and they also began to play. Yes, the royal club had a territorial advantage, they also had possession of the ball. But the team was reliable in defense and went well on the attack.
- Sustained starting onslaught - a turning point in the game?
No, it has become goal scored. After the game CSKA appeared confidence. Prior to this, the army team looked constrained, were more focused on defense than attack. The goal allowed to discard doubts and the team went forward. The whole second half, the red-blue looked good. This is the second and historic victory over Real Madrid, which everyone will remember. But it's a pity that CSKA did not qualify for the Europa League. In this case, the result would be perceived more positively.
- Who should be praised for this victory in the first place?
The whole team as a whole. The coach gives an instruction - the players follow it. And together they are a team. Therefore, there is no need to praise anyone separately.
A radio commentator Marca said during the broadcast that Fedor is the most talented football player in Russia after Alexander. After the defeat of Real Madrid, will the army team have no end to those who want to sign a striker?
Anything is possible because Europe is also looking for young and talented players. Chalov is a clean striker, he has a moment - he scores. Fedor opens up perfectly, interacts well with partners, and also has other positive qualities.
Is Chalov really the most talented now? Russian football player playing in the RPL? There is a feeling that the commentator uttered this phrase for the sake of a red word.
There are quite a lot of talented players in Russia, but the question is how they will progress. For example, the youth of CSKA played well this year, but they need to improve in order to be better. In any case, sooner or later, but the opponent adapts to the game. Teams study football players, find an “antidote” and need to constantly improve to prevent this from happening. Even Lionel and Cristiano do not stand still. Our players and even more so need to progress.
In turn, if we talk about CSKA, you should pay attention to the fact that the team does not always manage to show itself well. Yes, the matches with Real turned out to be of high quality, but the meetings with "" - no. By by and large it was better to take 6 points in games with the Czechs in order to reach the playoffs of the Europa League, but to lose to Madrid.
- Will the experience of victories in "big" matches help the young CSKA?
They need to forget that they didn't qualify for the Europa League and focus on continuing the season. It is necessary to play successfully in the Russian championship in order to get into the Champions League and perform more successfully, thanks to the experience gained. And I have no doubt that they will not make mistakes again if they come across a team like Victoria as an opponent.
- Departure from European competitions - a plus for the army in terms of the ability to focus only on the RPL?
No, this is complete nonsense. In Europe, all teams play on several fronts, but only we constantly think about fatigue. You don't need to pay attention to it. It is necessary to go out on the field, play to overcome yourself. Because as soon as the thought that you are tired appears in your head, you immediately get tired (laughs).
- How did you react to the fact that at the end of the match the Santiago Bernabeu stadium remained half empty?
In principle, this game meant nothing to Real Madrid. Even by the players it was clear that they are not fully laid out. It is noticeable that, for example, he played carelessly. The youth of Madrid tried, but Karim and others… They didn't have the zeal. In addition, they were inferior to the army team in the fight. It caught my eye.
Can we say that the absence of Russian teams in the playoffs of the Champions League is a result that reflects real level our football?
I think yes. In principle, CSKA performed well, given the change of generations. But most importantly, the army youth gained experience in performing in. Such victories are worth a lot. Having beaten Real Madrid, the players gain confidence.
Can CSKA's victory become a signal and a kind of call for others to Russian teams did not shirk in front of more eminent rivals?
Of course, this is an example. But there have been similar victories before. The same CSKA once beat Barcelona, and "" defeated Real Madrid. But more importantly, another thing is to hold the entire tournament as a whole. The army has no stability. Yes, we beat the Royal Club, but lost 5 points in the matches with Victoria. And the Czechs took and defeated Roma, to which CSKA lost. But the Romans are also not easy to beat. In the meeting with Victoria, Goncharenko's team had to play reliably in defense, as in the meeting with Madrid. But somewhere here they made a mistake.
The draw ceremony for the main club tournament in Europe was held in Monaco. On her Cristiano Ronaldo awarded for best goal season, and Modric awarded the title the best football player. But most importantly, UEFA has decided on the composition of all groups in the Champions League. We, of course, are primarily interested in the rivals of Loko and CSKA. Let's start with the champion.
Lokomotiv Moscow - Group D
Calendar
1st round: Galatasaray - Lokomotiv (September 18);
Round 2: Lokomotiv - Porto (October 2);
3rd round: Schalke-04 - Lokomotiv (October 23);
4th round: Lokomotiv - Schalke (November 6);
Round 5: Lokomotiv - Galatasaray (November 27);
Round 6: Porto - Lokomotiv (December 11).
Porto (Portugal)
Place last season: Champions
Place in the UEFA ranking: 11
Portuguese football is not as strong as it was just a few years ago. This is especially noticeable in European competition. Portugal is far behind Russia in the UEFA rankings and has already lost several clubs this season. Nevertheless, Porto is the champion of this country. Last year, the gap from the second Benfica was seven points, and the Champions League ended in a crushing loss to Liverpool in the 1/8 finals.
Trained by the club Sergio Conceisau, who previously worked with second-tier clubs. The midfielder stands out more than the rest in the squad Yasin Braimi and forward Vincent Abubakar. They are the most productive players of Porto so far.
The team started the season with a Super Bowl win and two start wins, but last game slowed down and lost at home to Vitoria. But it is still too early to draw conclusions about its shape.
Schalke-04 (Germany)
Place last season: 2
Ilya Gerkus even before the draw, I wanted the vice-champions of Germany to get into the Lokomotiv group. Perhaps the fact is that in the current Loko there are several former representatives of Schalke at once - sports director Stoffelshaus, forward farfan and newbie Höwedes.
A year earlier, Schalke screwed up and finished 10th. For the same reason, last season the club was left without European cups. He concentrated on the Bundesliga and calmly took second place in it after Bayern.
There are no superstars in the club (well, except for such Embolo), and the coach is Domenico Tedesco. As in the case of the Porto coach, this is the first time he has worked with a strong club.
Galatasaray (Türkiye)
Place last season: Champions
Fans of Loko certainly experienced nostalgic feelings for the Champions League of the 2000s. Then they also watched the games with this opponent. In 2002, both of them exchanged away victories.
Galatasaray is another champion in this group. True, in Europe last season turned out to be a real shame for the Turks. The defeat to the Swedish "Östersund" did not allow them to participate even in the group stage of the Europa League.
We are used to the fact that in Turkey there are a lot of consistently finishing superstars, but this applies to Galatasaray to a lesser extent. From famous football players except that Nagotomo And Feguli. Plus Musler- the very goalkeeper of the Uruguay national team, who made an offensive mistake in the playoffs. But the club experienced trainer. Fatih Terim certainly determined to restore the club's reputation in Europe.
CSKA Moscow - group G
Calendar
1st round: "Victoria" (Pilsen) - CSKA (September 19);
2nd round: CSKA - Real Madrid (October 2);
3rd round: Roma - CSKA (October 23);
Round 4: CSKA - Roma (November 7);
5th round: CSKA - "Victoria" (Pilsen) (November 27);
Round 6: Real Madrid - CSKA (December 12).
Real Madrid (Spain)
Place last season: 3
What can I say, the “army team” was out of luck again. Real for last years won the Champions League several times and rightly tops the UEFA rankings. And it's pointless to look at the La Liga table, in which the team became only third.
However, one can hope that perestroika will drag on in Madrid. The coach has changed, Cristiano Ronaldo has left, and this will certainly play a role. At least the club did not manage to win the European Super Cup.
Roma (Italy)
Place last season: 3
One more bronze medalists of their league, which caused a stir in Europe. It was Roma who made, perhaps, the main comeback of last season, knocking out Barça after devastating defeat in the first game. The Romans reached the semi-finals of the Champions League: no one expected this.
During the off-season, the club lost Nainggolan, Alison And Strotman but bought N'Zonzi And Pastore. The head coach is still expressive Di Francesco, who recently became so freaked out during a game that he broke his arm.
It is too early to draw conclusions about the beginning of the season, but in the offseason, Roma played in International Cup champions. There, the results were mixed. Yes, we lost to Real Madrid and Spurs, but we beat Barça once again.
Victoria (Czech Republic)
Place last season: Champions
The only champion of the group, who will probably only fight for third place. It is very likely that with CSKA (although, who knows).
It is unlikely that you will be told at least something by the names of the players of this club. Is that the head coach - Pavel Vrba not so long ago he coached Anji. Speaking of famous players: the alumni of the club are Nedved And Czech.
The Czechs were knocked out of the Champions League that season by Steaua, but they managed to perform well in the Europa League. The irony is that the same "Steaua" ended up in the "Victoria" group and finished only second in it. In the 1/16 finals, Partizan was passed, and the team stopped only at Sporting - in 1/8, and even then in extra time.
Results of the European Cup week.
Size prize pool- almost 2 billion euros. The total value of the players is 13.74 billion euros. The final of this competition alone is watched by 200 million viewers. All this is the Champions League, a tournament in which Lokomotiv and CSKA start from Russia.
This is a tournament of life and death. When Spartak missed the Champions League group stage, they had to sell their leader Quincy Promes. And having lost half of the composition of CSKA, only the opportunity to play in this tournament lured several stars to him. If our clubs make it to the playoffs in the Champions League, it means that they will earn at least 35 million euros each. Who is going to stop them from doing this?
RIVALS OF "LOKOMOTIV"
"Galatasaray"
Budget: 100 million euros
Most Valuable Player: Badou Ndiaye, valued at €15m
The cost of the entire composition: 96.65 euros
The most mysterious rival. His main star is coach Fatih Terim, nicknamed the Emperor. The main trump card is the stands, on which the slogan “Welcome to hell” addressed to the guests always hangs. But in terms of its financial capabilities, Galatasaray is at the level of the current Loko.
Schalke 04
Budget: 140 million euros
Most Valuable Player: Amin Harith, €25m
The cost of the entire composition: 256.4 million euros
Vice-champion of Germany, like all German clubs, knows how to count money. But last summer, Schalke lost several leaders at once, and the same Goretzka went to Bayern for free. There are no stars in the Schalke squad, and two of them at once former player play in Lokomotiv - Farfan and Hevedas.
"Porto"
Budget: 130 million euros
Most Valuable Player: Yasin Braimi, €26m
The cost of the entire composition: 241 million euros
Porto is a business club. It exists in order to buy inexpensive players, mainly from Brazil, promote them and sell them to the top teams in Europe for a lot of money. So Porto has already earned 510 million euros over the past 8 years.
opponents of CSKA
"Real"
Budget: 690 million
Most Valuable Player: Graet Bale, €90m
The cost of the entire composition: 968.3 ml. Euro
Giant European football. Compete with him in terms of financial performance is beyond the power of any Russian club. But, having sold Cristiano Ronaldo, Real made a big mistake: now tens of thousands fewer spectators are going to his matches.
"Roma"
Budget: 200 million euros
Most Valuable Player: Konstantinos Manolas, €40m
The cost of the entire composition: 369.2 million euros
Now Italian clubs are raising their heads. The TV contract for showing matches of the championship has grown, and the giants of Serie A can once again afford stars. And then there's Liverpool" Helped: he bought goalkeeper Alisson from the Romans for a record 62.5 million euros (Roma will receive another 10 million euros as bonuses).
"Victoria" Pilsen
Budget: 30 million euros
Most Valuable Player: Patrik Groszowski, €4m
The cost of the entire composition: 30.35 million euros
Our sizing! Czech Champion - one of the best teams Eastern Europe, but still the club is far from even the current CSKA. The army team starts the tournament with a match in Pilsen, and if they win, there will be at least some chance to fight for the playoffs.
You won't find Cristiano Ronaldo on this list. At 33 years old and with a "price tag" of 100 million euros, he dropped to 13th place. But in football, the phrase "the most dear footballers" means not the same as "the most valuable". Cristiano will prove it.
IN Russian clubs Champions League the most expensive players cost several times less. Lokomotiv midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak is valued at 18 million euros. CSKA defender Mario Fernandez - 20 million, and he is now the most expensive player in the Russian Premier League.
The strength of teams can be measured in different ways - by titles, ratings, income, the number of fans... Or you can - by the total cost of players. And in this ranking now the first place is occupied by Barcelona. It will be interesting to compare this table with the sports results of the Champions League.
BY THE WAY
32 clubs in the Champions League will earn 1.95 billion euros
Initial payments - 488 million euros
For participation in the group stage, each of the 32 clubs will be paid 15.25 million euros.
Fixed payments - 585 million.
The bonus for each win in the group stage will be 2.7 million, for a draw - 0.9 million.
Playoff payouts:
Qualifying for the 1/8 finals: 9.5 million each
Quarter-finals: 10.5 million each
Qualifying for the 1/2 finals: 12 million each
Qualifying for the final: 15 million each
The winner of the Champions League will receive an additional 4 million euros.
Participants in the match for the UEFA Super Cup -2018 will receive another 3.5 million, and the winner will receive an additional 1 million.
This ranking takes into account clubs' performance in the Champions League over the past 10 years. If the team makes its debut in the Champions League, it will be entitled to a little more than 1 million euros, and best club over the past 10 years will receive 35.5 million euros. On this moment The best club is Real Madrid. And then there are Barcelona and Bayern. They will get the most.
