Arrhythmia

Despite the different outcome of the penultimate matches in the group stage of the Champions League, Spartak and CSKA have retained almost equal chances of access to a steep playoff

For a long time, by the November fights of the main tournament of the Old World, our teams did not fit with rainbow prospects. Moreover, both red-white and red-blue, who exchanged victories with Seville and Basel in paired games, loomed the vouchers not in the comforting league of Europe, where Milan and Arsenal are indulging in now. But in order not to get into the company to Donnarum, Arsen Wenger, as well as to Zenit, the champion and vice-champion of the country needed to provide a hot reception of Maribor and Benfica in the cold Moscow.

It is hard to believe, but before the match for the “opening of the Arena”, “Spartak” entered the bookmakers in the three obvious favorites of the whole round. It was also unprofitable to put on his Victoria financially unprofitable, as well as the victory of Real Madrid over Apoel and PSG - over the "Celtic". And even “Karabakh” in the battle with “Cheli” sports analysts gave more chances for a positive result than “violets” in a fight with the guys of Massimo Carrera, who seemed to be caught by the end of the year a championship courage.

However, it was Maribor ", who had chopped up 10 goals from Liverpool, inhibited in September Spartak (1: 1), to which the experts" recorded "six points in this confrontation in advance.

“We took out an important lesson from the battle in Slovenia: dedication and concentration should be maximum regardless of the opponent,” the Italian coach told reporters, promising to light, as in Krasnodar.

True, by the middle of the half, it became clear that the ridge was not rich. “Spartak”, although he was led by the game, he did it too academic and ingenuously. “Do not score now, we’ll score later” - read in the eyes of Promes and his partners after each lazy attack. But the clock was ticking, and zero shone on the scoreboard. Moreover, Shuler and Co., which retained purely theoretical chances of the European Cup spring, almost pulled out at the beginning of the second act from the sleeve of Ace, but the bar prevented the off focus. "Will the cat be repeated?" - fans shrugged perplexedly shoulders, which were not so much from the cold as from the toothless attacks of their favorites. It just turned out to be much more dramatic than 20 years ago, when Spartak drove a without a draw with the champion of Slovakia and did not get into the main round. Because the Maribor, who did not score three matches in a row, received a hole from Ze Louis in the 82nd minute, did not scatter and unscrupulously rolled out the relaxed hosts already in a compensated time, revealing all the troubles of the people's team once again.

“We do not know how to act against positional protection and, moreover, again believed in success too early ...”, ”commented the club of the club Leonid Fedun and added:“ I can tell the fans that we will play in the Europa League. ” It is possible to understand Leonid Arnoldovich, but in fairness it should be noted that the victory over Liverpool on Enfield on December 6 will allow Spartak to swim in the 1/8 Champions League ...

... But CSKA held an exemplary match. For an hour and a half, the “centaurs” did not even let the “eagle” fly up to the distance of the bite to Igor Akinfeev, who, to the joy of his native public, finally interrupted the terrible bandwidth of the Euroseria, which lasted 11 years. The cavalry also looked nice in the attack, sending two hot greetings to Bruna Barla. And even in one case, CSKA was greatly pumped by the German judge Denise Atekiitein, who did not record the obvious offside of George Shennikov, and in the second - Jiadil built an incredible auto -chamber after the Vitino’s mercy, the merits of Viktor Goncharenko and his warriors, who secured the long -awaited February tour, does not diminish.

Well, in order to earn an additional bonus in the amount of 6 million euros for leaving the group and fighting the powers that be in this world, the red-blue, remaining on the third line, in the final performance for Old Trafford, you need to play better than Basel-in the production of “Yes Lush”. In other words, CSKA will also arrange a draw with the “devils” if Benfica will finally slap the door and painfully pinches the Swiss on his stage.