Former Zenit president Leonid Tufrin was disappointed with the performance of the blue-white-blues in a friendly match with Neftchi. He spoke about this in an interview with RB Sport.
The St. Petersburg team lost to Neftchi in Baku with a score of 1:2. Both goals for the hosts were scored by Reziuan Mirzov, who previously played in the RPL for a number of clubs, including Arsenal Tula, Spartak and Khimki.
“I’m very disappointed with Zenit’s performance,” says Tufrin. — The game made a painful impression. There were no Zenit players at all. The defense played atrociously. Knowing what kind of feints Mirzov had, they let him score two goals. How is this possible? I understand that the game was not of a fundamental nature. But guys, you are defending the colors of a club that wins the Russian championship, you need to save your face. I think there was some kind of bonus for this game. The guys came to Baku not only for an excursion. They came to play, to show themselves, what kind of championship we have, what cool players they are. In general, it’s an unpleasant aftertaste, and not only for me. I didn’t talk to any of the veterans or friends after the match, everyone was spitting, swearing, cursing the players at all costs. These people root for Zenit at heart and take failures to heart, because the team played completely weak-willed.”
Source: Rosbalt
Mario Twitchell is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his insightful and thought-provoking writing on a wide range of topics including general and opinion. He currently works as a writer at 247 news agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
