Sardar Azmoun @ Zenit St Petersburg | 2019

[BacheLot]

2-0
FT
Good effort from Zenit
RBL just in a different class quality & especially fitness wise.
They’re are a really well drilled bunch

These are the sorta games Sardar woulda had to score in to prove he belongs to elite striker bunch & validating some of those Real connections. -

[Leicester City]

Leipzig’s just too strong of a team, even in the Bundesliga as evident by their 8-0 victory... What’s important here is the fact that Zenit tried their best (home and away).

[Bladsville]

Hopefully Zenit can turn it around against Lyon, and then hopefully Malcom will be back in order for the game against Benefica.

[diz]

The stats told the whole story.

RBL had 3x more possession, completed passes, shots on goal. This no fluke, but a clearly superior team. Their passing was incredibly accurate and solid. I watched the first half, and it seemed that every time Zenit got the ball, there were 3 RBL defenders on him. It almost looked like they were playing with an extra player, they were so dominant.

[ParthianDE]

Consolation: Azmoun will get at least two more CL games under his belt.

[Bladsville]

Welp... Lyon is ANNIHILATING Benefica (2-0 at HT).. so there goes that.

[Leicester City]

That Chelsea and Ajax game tho

[Anoushiravan778]

Sardar Azmoun @ Zenit St Petersburg | 2019

Ajax got robbed again, unbelievable how bad this referee is
How can you give 2 red cards?


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[TM4LIFE]

So today’s results pretty much mean that it will be a battle between Lyon and Zenit for second place. If Zenit beat Lyon in St Petersburg and beat Benefica away, it will come down to goal difference unless Lyon fail to beat Leipzig.
They still have a good chance to qualify as second team

[diz]

Thank you for giving it your best Sardar

[inarsenewetrust]

My thoughts on match :

Leipzig are far better team in all aspects, except maybe the forward line. That is just reality. Semak had really limited options to try something different, no new creative players he could introduce this match to change game compared to last match. Added a defender for more stability, still didnt work. Best moments still came from sardar dzyuba interplay. But really, we have to say leipzig are a world class outfit. Upamacano is one of the best center backs I have seen in euro football. He is only 20! I put him right behind the likes of van dijk, koulibaly. He can be as good as those guys. MOTM again.

On sardar, he was manhandled most of night, and as usualy, we know zenit lack to creativity esp vs better teams to make many chances or have any spells of posession. BUT, saying that, sardar was by far the most dangerous zenit player. His run for his best chance, the double movement to leave behind upamacano, was simply superb, and I am sure he actually intentionally scuffed the shot because that was the only way to score from that angle which he nearly did. Worked gulasci with other shot that could have been more in corner. Still, he showed his talent in these moments. I thought he could have held ball up better, but also many of the times he was dispossessed he was giving knock downs, letting ball bounce off him, and unfortunately I think zenit hardly won ONE second ball today, so made his linkup play seem worse than it really is. Normally his teammates get to those knockdowns, but not against this super fit and sharp leipzig outfit.

Zenit still in with fighting chance. Must beat lyon at home, which I think they will do, and benfica away, and hope leipzig perform strongly away to lyon.

Overall, sardar desperately unlucky not to score, but as usual in big games severely affected by zenits lack of midfield build up.

[EKBATAN]

damn i was so sure Zenit was gonna make it outta the group, but they really screwed up these 2 games. Its crazy in CL, you can never predict how the groups will play out.


on a side note: wtf was that Chelsea-Ajax bs today?? That ref in one move screwed Ajax 3 ways....2 reds and a PK....Ajax deserved much better, Chelsea did not deserve that draw

[inarsenewetrust]

damn i was so sure Zenit was gonna make it outta the group, but they really screwed up these 2 games. Its crazy in CL, you can never predict how the groups will play out.
on a side note: wtf was that Chelsea-Ajax bs today?? That ref in one move screwed Ajax 3 ways....2 reds and a PK....Ajax deserved much better, Chelsea did not deserve that draw

I hesitate to label it as a screwup and lean more towards a footballing reality. 9/10 times if a team has better players they will win. even more if that teams with better players is a well oiled, supremely fit, pressing machine that is relentless for 90 mins. Leipzig's only problems come from their own youth and inexperience, not being clinical or 100% focussed playing out of the back. That is what happened when lyon beat them in their own stadium, a real freak result. But the last 3 halves vs zenit they have simply been on a different level.

Having said that, I would call not getting a point out of the first game a screw up, given that they were leading at half and actually in decent control. Semaks failure to recognize that leipzig could go and would go up multiple gears in second half of that game until it was too late cost them there. Today, I felt he had really little options at his disposal as a coach to counter anything leipzig did. I was dissapointed that semak was also unable to charge the players mentally more. They seemed like they knew they were outgunned and going down. I thought that obvious leipzig would dominate but not be given a red carpet towards the goal. Zenit midfield and D line lacked aggression and some famous russian fighting spirit on home turf. They lacked gheyrat, not to say they didnt try, but it was the one aspect of this game they could try to dictate, the emotional one, and they didnt utilize it at all.

As you say, it is finely poised now. Two Zenit wins will PUT THEM THROUGH REGARDLESS OF ANYTHING LYON DO VS LEIPZIG, I am pretty sure. The first tie breaker does not come down to goal difference, but rather head to head record between the two tied teams.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018%E2%80%9319_UEFA_Champions_League_group_stage#Tiebreakers

section 3.1 is the tiebreaker explanation.

Good news for zenit is their destiny is in their own hands. If they beat lyon at home and Benfica away, who at that point will certainly be out of running even for third spot (assuming they lose to leipzig away), then even if Lyon pull off an unlikely victory vs leipzig on last day zenit will be through, since they would have better head to head record in the matches with lyon.

[k0urosh]

Ajax got robbed again, unbelievable how bad this referee is
How can you give 2 red cards?


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Don't mean to argue but why was it not worthy of two yellows? The first one you surely would agree was deserving of the second yellow (Daley Blind) as for the second yellow for the handball it's harsh and undeserved but apparently it was given for dissent. It seems as if most people are complaining because of the fact that it happened back to back

[Ardalan]

I hesitate to label it as a screwup and lean more towards a footballing reality. 9/10 times if a team has better players they will win. even more if that teams with better players is a well oiled, supremely fit, pressing machine that is relentless for 90 mins. Leipzig's only problems come from their own youth and inexperience, not being clinical or 100% focussed playing out of the back. That is what happened when lyon beat them in their own stadium, a real freak result. But the last 3 halves vs zenit they have simply been on a different level.

Having said that, I would call not getting a point out of the first game a screw up, given that they were leading at half and actually in decent control. Semaks failure to recognize that leipzig could go and would go up multiple gears in second half of that game until it was too late cost them there. Today, I felt he had really little options at his disposal as a coach to counter anything leipzig did. I was dissapointed that semak was also unable to charge the players mentally more. They seemed like they knew they were outgunned and going down. I thought that obvious leipzig would dominate but not be given a red carpet towards the goal. Zenit midfield and D line lacked aggression and some famous russian fighting spirit on home turf. They lacked gheyrat, not to say they didnt try, but it was the one aspect of this game they could try to dictate, the emotional one, and they didnt utilize it at all.

As you say, it is finely poised now. Two Zenit wins will PUT THEM THROUGH REGARDLESS OF ANYTHING LYON DO VS LEIPZIG, I am pretty sure. The first tie breaker does not come down to goal difference, but rather head to head record between the two tied teams.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018%E2%80%9319_UEFA_Champions_League_group_stage#Tiebreakers

section 3.1 is the tiebreaker explanation.

Good news for zenit is their destiny is in their own hands. If they beat lyon at home and Benfica away, who at that point will certainly be out of running even for third spot (assuming they lose to leipzig away), then even if Lyon pull off an unlikely victory vs leipzig on last day zenit will be through, since they would have better head to head record in the matches with lyon.

Hamin, Leipzig az nazare keifiyate bazikon dar koll behtare; yek khate defaie besyaar khobi daare, va yek khate miyoneye KHALLAGH ke baraye

khate hamle mogheiyat ijad mikone.

Dar zemn, morrabbie Leipzig besyaar shayeste ast va yeki az setarehaaye ayandeye morrbagarie football.