SLUTSKY EYES SUNDAY DERBY AGAINST SPARTAK

CSKA manager Leonid Slutsky shares his point of view on the coming Moscow derby between his team and Spartak, which will be held at Luzhniki stadium on Sunday.


"Sometimes I think that beating Spartak is the most significant thing for CSKA fans and that would agree on dropout of Premier League even easier than on losing to our most uncompromising competitors", Slutsky said.

"Our acquisitions have been planed long time ago. We signed Doumbia in winter so we perfectly knew that he would join our squad".

"Transfer work is always in progress, however there are no players, who are close to signing contracts with us. I count on services of those players who took part in our trainings and Vagner Love is one of them".

"In his case everything depends on emotional background of the match. If the game is favourable for us, it can give Vagner Love additional strength".

"It’s hard to assess his current form, because I haven’t worked with him before and I have nothing to compare with. Our tests show that he is 70-80% ready now".

"Honda looked not well in the match in Samara, and tests showed that he hadn’t fully recovered from the World Cup and we decided to give him a break and prepare the player for the big game with Spartak. That is why Honda missed our clash with Spartak Nalchik".

"In general World Cup participants were exhausted, because this tournament requires their physical strength and energy and it definitely tells on players’ form".

"The World Championship ended some time ago, but it’s evident that players, who took part in it, haven’t restored their best conditions".

"On Sunday we will play a special game, which is very important for both sides. Besides it is the most significant derby of our country, teams will need to earn points".

"I came up against Spartak when I worked in different teams, won four matches and lost one game in nine meetings. Of course I would be glad to improve my personal statistics, but I understand that previous successes don’t guarantee positive results in future".

... but nothing matches the thrill and challenge of having money on the line!

SLUTSKY: CHANGES ARE INEVITABLE

CSKA head coach Leonid Slutsky talks about ongoing World Cup in South Africa and about his club’s preparations in Austria.


"To my mind the time has come for FIFA to change something, because the World Cup is not so entertaining and favourites don’t impress very much because they look tired", Slutsky said to sport press. "Changes are necessary to make the World Cup not worse than the Champions League for instance".

"Players get exhausted in their clubs and as the result they are tired at the World Championship. FIFA obliged everyone to finish the season one month before the tournament, but it’s not enough. In this case players have only one week of vacations and they have to resume hard work again".

"I have no ready solution, but they can change system of the Champions League when the World Cup is held. In any case decision is to be made by FIFA, and they definitely should do something".

"I watch World Cup matches attentively, and I support teams and players emotionally more than analyze their games, especially when CSKA players are on the pitch".

"Doumbia appeared in the field only for twelve minutes on the day when CSKA played trial match against Metallurg Donetsk. I read that he scored a goal from off-side position".

"I saw Tosic playing and he produced very good impression on me, but again he had little playing practice. Odia looked not well in the first match, and he improved his play after that".

"I am not surprised that people are impressed by Honda’s display. The only thing which worries me is that position of a striker is not the best one for him. I think that he would play much better if he plays closer to midfield line".

"CSKA is in very difficult situation now, since we lack four key players and we cannot introduce our two newcomers Doumbia and Tosic to our playing scheme".

"I understand that we will play the first match after summer break with those players, who train with us now. IF Gonzalez and Honda don’t advance to the World Cup final match, they will return to us, but they will need to get rest from this tough competition. Moreover Guilherme is injures and it will keep him sidelined from action too".

"On 3 July we will play one more trial match in Moscow against team from Naro-Fominsk. And after that we will begin one-week preparations for Premier League match against Saturn".

INTER? MANCHESTER? BARCELONA?

The head coach and players of CSKA spoke who and why they wanted to play in the Champions League quarterfinals.


Leonid Slutsky, head coach: "It would be unfair if I say that I do not care with whom to play in the Champions League. But most of all I do not want to get Manchester United, Barcelona and Inter as rivals."

"Probably if you ask any of our possible opponents who they want to play on this stage the answer would be one – CSKA. And it is quite easy to understand – Bordeaux, Lyon, Arsenal and Bayern are all recognized top teams. But to my mind the three mentioned undesirable clubs have an advantage in level."

Igor Akinfeev, goalkeeper: "Actually it does not matter to me what team to play. And I do not think it is wise to try guessing for we will know soon enough."

Evgeniy Aldonin, midfielder: "Choice on this stage of the competition is rather relative – only most serious teams are left. In this situation it does not matter who will you get."

"In terms of the tournament competition French clubs seems to be more favourable but look: Lyon has just kicked out Real Madrid of the competition and Bordeaux outplayed Bayern and Juventus to occupy the first place in the group showing great powerful football."

"So you can choose as much as you please but you will not get any advantage. The only thing I do not want on this stage already is to oppose Barcelona. This team is really stunning now especially at home. And the physical form of Messi impresses a lot."

Vasiliy Berezutsky, defender: "We are to play in Italy! Milos Krasic and I have said it together without previous arrangements while on the plane from Seville. And if an idea occurs in two heads simultaneously that means it is correct."

"But no matter what the results of the draw will be we will fight with any opponent. Moreover by the end of March – beginning of April the form of CSKA will improve – at the moment we are only acquiring it. On the contrary all the opponents have their championships drawing to a close. So we will definitely have some chances and we just need to grab them."

Alexey Berezutsky, defender: "The choice in the quarterfinals is quite conventional because there are no weak opponents. But I want to have a club with a name. And the greater the name the better."

Mark Gonzalez, midfielder: "Had I a choice to pick up our challenger I would prefer Manchester United. It turned so that when CSKA was playing this team in the group stage I was injured and could not take part in either of two matches. And for me, as a former player of Liverpool, it is very important to compete with the current English champion."

Milos Krasic, midfielder: "You cannot find a weak opponent in the Champions League quarterfinals – and it is quite obvious. So it is useless to choose anybody. But I have a feeling that the draw will bring us together with the Italian champions. Internazionale is a very strong club and it will be interesting to play against them."

Tomas Necid, forward: "I would prefer Barcelona – I have always wanted to play at the Camp Nou stadium. And actually the stronger the rival the more interesting it is."

Keisuke Honda, midfielder: Actually I do not care whom to play in the Round of 8. First of all because everybody there are strong, and secondly my favourite club – Real Madrid has already stumbled out of the competition. It would have been very attractive to play with them."

"But this way or other I am sure that CSKA will improve by the quarterfinals and we will be able to compete with any team."

Deividas Semberas, midfielder: "There is no much difference: no clubs are easy. And it is not a good thing to choose one’s opponent. For example Sevilla said to be happy when the draw brought it together with CSKA. And where is Sevilla now?"

SLUTSKY SATISFIED WITH CSKA READINESS

CSKA head coach Leonid Slutsky is satisfied with his team’s readiness for the Champions League clash against Sevilla and hopes that his club will surprise Spanish side with their play tonight.


"After the first matches of the new season I understand that I would get rid of only one thing – injuries", Slutsky told sport press. "Dzagoev, Krasic and Gonzalez would look much better if not their injury problems during winter preparations".

"I am satisfied with the team’s readiness, as we begin the season in perfect form. At the same time I am not glad with poor chance conversion, but it’s consequence of injuries of leading attackers".

"We really had few scoring chances against Sevilla, but in such games there cannot be many opportunities to score. In the match with Rubin there were enough scoring episodes and we didn’t convert them at all".

"Our best football is supposed to be enough, but we should outplay Sevilla. It’s necessary not to hope that they will make mistakes, but to be better in attack".

SLUTSKY: WE WERE CLOSER TO VICTORY

CSKA head coach Leonid Slutsky is optimistic about the overall result of two-round battle against Sevilla.


"Of course we would like to achieve something more than 1:1 draw and we were closer to victory", Slutsky said. "This result is more useful for Sevilla, but we will fight in the return match".

"We have three weeks and we will hold two official games during this time – in the Super Cup and in the championship. Moreover I hope that Alan Dzagoev will be well fit for the match in Spain. I even believe that he will be able to help us against Rubin on March 7".

"The team looked well functionally and there was no replacement for the flank players, who are substituted more than others. And I didn’t see any sense in changing someone from other zones, since there were no problems there".