About the appointment Sergei Semak the head coach of Zenit became known a few days ago. A meeting of the new blue-white-blue coach with fans was planned in advance at the club’s base in Udelny Park. On the day the contract was signed, however, it was moved to the Petrovsky Stadium. Because of this, journalists had to rush around the city for half a day, frantically trying to catch Sergei Bogdanovich. We weren’t able to get into the closed meeting with fans, but we managed to talk to Semak after it. After talking with fans, he spent a few minutes with journalists.
- Sergei Bogdanovich, congratulations on your appointment. How was the meeting with the fans?
- Initially, the meeting with fans was planned at the base in Udelny Park, then it was moved to the Petrovsky stadium. The guys asked, I drove up for five minutes, no problems.
- How did the fans receive you?
- If they came to the meeting, it means they accepted my appointment normally. I appreciate their attention. But I understand perfectly well that I am at the very beginning of my journey. There is a lot of work ahead.
- What was the conversation about?
- There are no secrets, what they talked about. General phrases about what fans would like to see did not relate to a deep tactical understanding of football.
– Did you easily agree to Zenit’s offer?
– It’s never easy, any decision is difficult. Of course, for me this is a step forward in my work. The risk is always present, it is never small when it comes to the work of a head coach. There are many additional complications. If you take on something, you should try to do it to the maximum.
- There is an understanding of who will enter your coaching staff?
- It’s too early to talk about this. A lot of information in the press was not true. The appointment took place very quickly, with an element of surprise. In the near future we will decide about the coaching staff, training camps and everything else.
“Everyone is hugging and kissing Semak now. He returned home"
Zenit President Sergei Fursenko on the appointment of Sergei Semak as head coach.
- Is Alexander Nizelik on the list of candidates being considered?
- Naturally he comes in.
- And Alexander Kerzhakov?
- No. I didn’t talk to Sasha about this and didn’t hear anything about it from the managers.
- You first came to negotiations in St. Petersburg about two weeks ago. What happened during this time?
- You know very well that the position of the Zenit management was voiced that I am one of the candidates for the post of head coach of the club. Then there was a meeting, but it was not specific. Last night everything went in a different direction.
Many players will return to Zenit from loan, including Artyom Dzyuba and Oleg Shatov. Do you have any idea about their future?
- Very soon you will find out everything. I have all the information on the players: who is and where they are. Zenit had many players on loan. Very soon you will find out which of them will go to the training camp and which will not.
- When do you plan to have your first training session?
- As planned: on June 15 - a medical examination, and on the 17th - departure for the first training camp.
- There is talk that Denisov will return to Zenit. This is true?
- I can’t say anything about possible transfers. It takes time to work, to weigh everything properly. - a top football player, any coach likes his game.
What goals were set by management in terms of results - Champions League and first place or formation new team?
- The tasks will be announced before the season. Of course, our team must fight for the championship and constantly play in the Champions League.
Was there a conversation about the athletic department? Will Vyacheslav Malafeev and Oreste Cinquini stay? Will there be a new athletic director?
“There was a conversation about everything, but it takes time to analyze everything before making decisions.”
- We understand that you can’t say anything about the players now, but there is one player who...
- Messi? - Semak asked with a smile.
No, Danny said that he was ready to return to Zenit and devote several more years to it. Are you considering his candidacy?
- We are considering all quality players who can strengthen Zenit.
Spent one of the most disastrous seasons in modern history. For the first time in ten years, the team was left without medals in the Russian football championship, where it finished only in fifth place. It was worse only in 2005, when the blue-white-blues remained sixth.
A year ago, the management of the club from the banks of the Neva spent millions on transfers and inviting a famous Italian to the post of head coach. The bet didn't work. Mister was unable to prove himself in Russian club and went to pull his country’s national team out of the swamp.
Tired of spending that did not live up to expectations, Zenit decided to invite a Russian specialist to the post of team coach. The club was headed by Sergei. Apart from emergency measures in the form of a three-month arrival at the post in 2009, then working with a double, then
at Zenit as a full-fledged mentor Russian coach will be the first time since 2002.
The agreement with 42-year-old Semak is for two years with the possibility of extension for another one. The young specialist noted that working with the famous club is an honor and pleasure for him.
“Of course, it was a great honor for me to even be among the candidates for this position, and to receive an invitation is very honorable and pleasant.
At the same time, I understand how difficult and difficult it will be, there is a lot of work ahead, I need to immediately begin my duties and slowly put in order the issues that exist now,” Semak said.
The specialist spent the previous year and a half at Ufa, which became the first club where he worked as a head coach. Under his leadership, the team from the capital of Bashkortostan entered the Europa League for the first time in its history, finishing sixth in the completed RFPL season. The team got a ticket to the European tournament after the Russian Cup winner Tosno failed to pass licensing in.
“Today I am very happy. I would like to thank Ufa, which gave me the chance to gain concrete experience.
Well, my family and I are happy to return to the city that has become our home,” Semak said.
Semak’s career is going almost perfectly.
He made his debut as a player very early and became one of the few athletes who managed to score a goal in the elite division Russian football up to 18 years old.
After a season at Asmaral, Semak spent 11 years at CSKA, becoming a true red-blue legend of the club. Having scored the famous hat-trick against PSG in a Champions League match, the footballer received an invitation to the Parisian team, where he was unable to fully express himself, usually remaining in the reserves. Then there were two seasons at FC Moscow, and three at Zenit.
With teams from St. Petersburg and Kazan, as well as with the Moscow army team, Semak became the champion of Russia.
Currently, he is the only one who managed to win the RFPL with three different clubs.
Semak’s performances for the Russian national team deserve special attention.
It was Sergei who was the captain of the team that won bronze medals European Championship - 2008.
At that tournament, Semak performed a very difficult goal pass through himself, after which he scored the only goal against the Greek national team, and the meeting ended in victory for the team with a score of 1:0.
The athlete also scored one of the most important goals in the history of Zenit. In 2012, in the first leg of the round of 16 of the Champions League against Portuguese side Befniki, he gave his team the lead with a backheel kick. True, the blue-white-blue still lost on the sum of the two meetings (3:2, 0:2).
After finishing his playing career, Semak worked on the coaching staff of Zenit in 2013-2016. Once he was even the acting head coach of the St. Petersburg team; under his leadership, Zenit played two matches - they lost to CSKA in the national championship (0: 1), and then in return match In the 1/8 finals of the Champions League, they defeated the German Borussia Dortmund (2:1), which was not enough to reach the quarterfinals (the St. Petersburg team lost the first match with a score of 2:4).
Semak also has experience working with the Russian national team, on whose headquarters he was a member in 2014-2016. At first, the specialist was an assistant, and then Leonid Slutsky.
“Zenit” will be the specialist’s first serious call. The last two coaches of the blue-white-sky blues, Mancini and the Romanians, did not stay in office for more than a year. All that remains is to wait and watch how things go in the “execution” position for the first Russian specialist in many years.
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The epic with the choice of a new Zenit coach is coming to an end. His name will be announced in the near future, we need to make preparation plans and decide which players are needed and who are not. But almost more important question: who will take the post of sports director at Zenit, which has been vacant for a long time? In football clubs that are organized correctly, in a Western way, this is a key figure. He determines policy, conducts transfers, controls the preparation of the reserve, etc. There was a serious struggle for this post at Zenit.
Parallel Processes
Konstantin Sarsania was in many ways perfect figure in this position. Anyway, the president Sergey Fursenko all sports work"hung" on him. On the one hand, this was a convenient option. On the other hand, everything “collapsed” as soon as Sarsania passed away on October 7th. The system of checks and balances that made it possible to control the activities of Roberto Mancini and the fate of invited players failed. Plans for the reform of the Zenit academy and other sectors, which Sarsaniya had planned to implement, were curtailed. The club spends about 500 million rubles a year on the academy, and everyone understands that the return does not meet expectations. St. Petersburg football students play for Zenit only at training camps. Even Zenit-2 is saved in the FNL by the middle-aged Andrei Panyukov (23 years old), Ilya Zuev (24), Mikhail Kerzhakov (31). Ilya Skrobotov scored a goal for Zenit in the RFPL, but he is a graduate of the Zenit Sports School for Youth. In connection with the possible appointment of Sergei Semak to the post of head coach, there was talk that 34-year-old Igor Denisov could return to the team. End your career. So that they can see that Zenit still has its own students.
Who would be appointed coach of the team also depended on who would take the post of sports director. Although elections for both positions took place in parallel. Zenit managers traditionally took the issue with the mentor into their own hands. Sergei Semak was heard by the board of directors of Zenit. They went to Europe for negotiations with candidates (the same Maurizio Sarri), according to sources, Alexander Dyukov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of FC Zenit, and Maxim Mitrofanov, Advisor to the Chairman of the Board of the Club (this post is held by Sergei Fursenko), former General Director. Sergey Fursenko, according to some reports, I wanted to try the option with Wild Lawyer but this idea was killed. And in general, according to media reports, the powers of the Zenit president were somewhat “cut” at the end of the season, although Fursenko received a mandate for further management. Under stricter board oversight. If nothing extraordinary happens in the coming days, Sergei Semak will be appointed coach, as Sport Day by Day predicted. He is patronized Alexey Miller, Zenit cartridge. Around the same time, the club will receive a sports director.
Three parties
Conventionally speaking, three “ruling parties” have formed in Zenit, each of which seeks to nominate its own candidate for this post. The first is a team of foreigners led by an Italian Oreste Cinquini, holding the post of Deputy Sports Director. With him there is also a mysterious in its essence and functions Elizabeth Bartosche, a former FIFA match agent who worked at the RFU when the Russian national team was still coached by Fabio Capello. They deal with transfers, selection policy, and manage the affairs of foreign players invited to Zenit. Someone compares this company with the collective Biron - there was such a foreign regent who led the Russian Empire during the era of palace coups. He was then “pushed aside”, to the relief of the entire Russian court. But if you ask the club’s managers whether these are useful workers, you will probably get an affirmative answer. The influence of “foreign labor” on Zenit has been noticeable in recent years.
There is a party that can be called “former managers,” which means Maxim Mitrofanov and his many associates. Although it was partially “destroyed”, resettled in the back streets, fortunately Zenit is a big club and there is something to do there, especially considering the addition in the form of a new stadium, but it is alive, and one of its representatives probably wants to return the lost positions. Again, we hear different things. And about the “fifth column”, and about the fact that these people are more administrators than “football players”, to such an extent that it is better to keep them away from football... But they also have successes behind them (titles, transfers, economic achievements), and calling them “written off” is not entirely correct.
Finally, there is a sprout of young functionaries, people with a football background, who are grouped around the figure of the former Zenit goalkeeper. Vyacheslav Malafeeva, holding the post, so to speak, of deputy deputy sports director. They also want to manage and determine Zenit’s policy, at least in its sports part. And these people managed to do something. And with a minus sign (for example, not everyone liked Malafeev’s role in the story of the loan of Artem Dzyuba and Oleg Shatov), and with a plus sign (in particular, negotiations between employees of the “Malafeev camp” with agents of the Argentines and, in general, representatives of football players playing for different “Zeniths” led to the fact that these players sharply increased their fighting shape at the end of the season). Of course, the ambitions of these people extend further. They see Zenit as a club that should be replenished by graduates of St. Petersburg football, where only strong foreign players should play - and if they do not play as they should, measures must be taken against them - where there is a clearly defined strategy that allows them to rely on local personnel (this applies not only to football players) and fight for titles through a more correct organization of the economy and its business component.
Favorite - Vyacheslav Malafeev?
All these “parties” have their own strengths and weaknesses, achievements and merits, and weight in the eyes of their superiors. It is clear that if one of them gains the upper hand, the role of the others will sharply decrease, if not be reduced to zero. And given that the previous administration of Zenit is now in the shadows, the foreign vector of development is being questioned, the chances that the post of sports director will be entrusted to Malafeev are regarded as high. His figure looks the most advantageous in the eyes of the football community. Other Zenit managers have already received a lot of blows, and foreigners always come under attack in case of failures. Of course, Malafeev lacks management experience in big club. But he was involved in business, made films, was Vladimir Putin’s confidant in the presidential elections of the Russian Federation, knows languages, and most importantly, he went through a football career that was several decades long, achieved outstanding success as a player and had already established himself as a functionary. It is precisely such proven personnel that the leading clubs in Europe rely on, here we can recall Bayern, Barcelona, and Juventus.
If Malafeev takes one of the key positions at Zenit, it would be logical to appoint Sergei Semak to the post of head coach. And, as it turns out, there are no other candidates left. In any case, Zenit’s choice will have to be respected - no matter who he entrusts with solving the main problems.
). An SE columnist tells how the situation could develop.
Sergey EGOROV
Board of Directors meeting St. Petersburg club officially did not have the task of choosing a new head coach. According to my information, the main item on the agenda was: “Strategy for the development of the club.” Zenit management prepared it, but in the end it was decided to finalize the document.
It is clear that the strategy also contained a sports component - perhaps it was discussed that special attention should be paid to home-grown football players, taking into account a) the remaining limit, albeit in the future for the next two years; b) UEFA rules for such players in the application for European competitions; c) the problem with the lack of locals at Zenit, which is sometimes felt in the mood of the public.
Sergey SEMAK. Photo Vyacheslav EVDOKIMOV/FC Zenit
After reaching the knockout stages of the Champions League, PAULO FONSECA attended a press conference dressed as Zorro. What else will surprise the Shakhtar coach? Photo by REUTERS
FONSECA
A very strange story has developed with. According to my information, the Dutchman was indeed a candidate, but even before the meeting of the board of directors the topic was removed from the agenda.
Sergei Semak officially became the head coach of Zenit. The 2-week pause, which fairly exhausted St. Petersburg football fans, ended with an appointment that fans on the Internet managed to discuss up and down.
Sergey Semak//Alexander Nikolaev/Interpress
Semak’s agreement with Zenit was concluded according to the 2+1 system – for two years with the possibility of extension for another year.
Sergei Semak entered the Gazprom building on the Promenade des Anglais on Monday, May 14: a photograph of Semak entering was posted on Twitter by Moscow commentator Georgy Cherdantsev (and there is reason to believe that this move was part of a complex PR combination to probe public opinion; with that the same goal in the Zenit public social network A poll was conducted on VKontakte: 45 thousand out of 70 voted for Semak, that is, 65%).
For more than two weeks, rumors persisted about a power struggle in the leadership. football club, and the lack of news about the choice of head coach against this background looked natural. The news alternately flashed the names of Dick Advocaat, Maurizio Sarri, Rafael Benitez and even very exotic football heroes like Jose Pekerman.
It can be assumed that in addition to the football component, public opinion also influenced Semak’s choice; that poll in VK is another example of this. Zenit's season turned out to be frankly unsuccessful, and there is a feeling that Semak's appointment is in many ways a signal to the fans: we hear you, we ourselves are unhappy, we want it to be better.
Now to the football component. Pupil of the Lugansk school Olympic reserve moved to Moscow immediately after school, at the age of 16 (graduated from school with a gold medal), ended up in the mythical club "Asmaral", from where he was drafted into the army and became a CSKA football player.
For CSKA, Semak played nearly 300 matches, scored 68 goals and, tired of the coaching tone of Valery Gazzaev, moved to Parisian PSG: at that time a modest French club, not yet drowned by the generous investments of Arab sheikhs. In 2006, Sergei returned to Russian league and became the main football player for the young coach Leonid Slutsky at FC Moscow. Since 2008 - twice champion in Kurban Berdyev's Rubin. Since 2010, he has been a Zenit football player. Semak is the only football player who became the champion of Russia as part of three different teams: CSKA, Rubin and Zenit. Having ended his career due to injury, he joined the coaching staff of Luciano Spalletti, then worked as an assistant to Fabio Capello in the Russian national team, Andre Villas-Boas and Mircea Lucescu. In January 2017, he took charge of Ufa, with which this season he achieved a record 6th place for the club and qualified for the Europa League.
Semak has an amazing career: over 20 years on the field, he managed to work with the legendary Konstantin Beskov and Guy Lacombe, Gazzaev and Slutsky, Berdyev and Spalletti. Sometimes they say: it doesn’t matter who the player or coach worked with, he’s simply not suitable for the role of the main one. Semak's year and a half at Ufa showed that he definitely has the qualifications. “Ufa” played pragmatic, understandable football, with pressure and an obvious focus on results. Moreover, this result was achieved. Ufa has very balanced statistics: 34 goals scored, 30 missed, 11 wins, 10 draws, 9 losses. It would be hard to call Ufa's football bright, but, unlike Zenit, Semak's team was recognizable.
You often hear: they say, Sergei Bogdanovich is too soft, too kind. This is an illusion: a kind and gentle football player will not last top level two decades on the field, this is an axiom. And remember how Semak shoved the assistant to the chief referee Igor Fedotov in the game “Ufa” - “Zenit” in April of this year. On TV it seemed that in just a second the entire coaching staff, led by Semak, would move from words to action and a fight would begin.
Naturally, Semak has an incredible range of work. For some reason myths come to mind Ancient Greece. In fact, Sergei needs to deal with two teams: one consists of Lucescu’s players returning from loan, the second is the team of the current head coach of the Italian national team. Now we cannot predict what kind of support the fans and, most importantly, the management will have. By the way, in general there is a hypothesis that Zenit’s troubles in recent years are not from the coach. But in any case, we often heard the phrase “If Semak is there, I’ll take a subscription” at the end of May, we have a very exciting season ahead of us.
Fedor Pogorelov, Fontanka.ru
