Don't believe the smells: Spartak again missed the victory over the outsider
With such a draw, it immediately became clear that it would not be easy. Liverpool and Sevilla are teams that are significantly higher than Spartak in the European table of ranks. And after the red-whites still failed to get three points in Slovenia, jumping above the head became a vital necessity. But who would have thought that this exercise would have to be performed in a home match with Maribor, the obvious outsider of the group. Yes, and unsuccessfully.
It would be naive to count on an early hail of scoring chances like what happened in Saturday's match against Krasnodar. The Slovenes transparently hinted that they had come to Moscow for a tit in their hands. They built defensive redoubts at their penalty area and for the time being did not show their noses behind the front line. And Spartak is not as good in positional attack as it is at speed.
Even Liverpool needed almost an hour of playing time to find the key to the Maribor's bristly defense in their stands. Despite the fact that the English have a lot of football players who are able to create danger from scratch. Massimo Carrera has only one such player at his disposal — Quincy Promes. And he was held by at least two defenders.
And yet, Spartak too quickly adopted the old grandfather's method of loading canopies into the goalkeeper's room. This method more often does not give the desired result than vice versa. He did not bring anything good to Muscovites for a long time, if you do not take into account the inaccurate head kick performed by Pashalich before the whistle for the break.
It would be great if the guests themselves helped a little. Still not the most skilled performers. And at the beginning of the game, they really made a couple of gross mistakes, but they could not be punished. This was the end of the gifts, but it was not possible to create something on their own.
And it would be fine if Spartak had undivided possession of the ball, sucking all the juices out of the opponent. But the necessary skills were decidedly lacking, and over time, "Maribor" began to rise more and more often from the trenches. Yes, he got so inflated that he almost led the bill. In the 50th minute, the bar, kissed at the time by Artem Rebrov, showed courtesy by taking on the blow of the Slovenian defender Schuler.
Alarmed fans photographed on a Sony Xperia XZ1 smartphone
It's time to put the trumps on the table. Fortunately, there was such a card on the bench. Captain Glushakov came out and immediately added energy. Vdaril from afar, even if not much, but for sure. Spartak's first shot on target, and it's in the middle of the second half! However, by that time the red-whites had significantly diversified their attacks, and new hits seemed a matter of time.
Ze Luiz should have scored after the first pass from the flank. But the Cape Verdean missed. But he quickly rehabilitated himself. On purpose, he missed the ball, launched by Glushakov into the abyss of the penalty area, and after a series of subtle passes, he found himself face to face with the goalkeeper. It would be a real crime not to score here.
There was nothing left until the end, and given how toothlessly the Slovenes attacked, the smell of victory over the "Opening Arena" hung quite distinct. We propose to blame this smell for what happened. He drugged the players, and for some reason they decided to play to hold the account. How many cases have there been when such decisions have led to sad results…
In short, the irreparable happened in the 92nd minute. "Maribor" suddenly erupted into a well-thought-out attack, the development of which the Spartak defenders watched so indifferently that the theory about the insidious smell becomes even more realistic.
1:1, and the dream of the playoffs almost melted away. It was necessary to smash Sevilla and gag Liverpool in order to lose as many as four points in meetings with Maribor! It remains to be hoped that they will also put a stick in the wheels of the Spaniards, and Spartak will still be able to jump over their heads now in England.
Keywords: Champions League | Moscow | Spartak | Football