Maksim Smirnov - Our run of thirty-nine games unbeaten in domestic football has ended in emphatic fashion this month. However, we still sit a top of the league and are within touching distance of the Champions League First Knockout Round.
Vadik Vassily - Following our first loss in all competitions in the final game of September against Chelsea, we went into the game against Akhmat with a point to prove. However, the game got off to a slow start, with limited action in the first half. It took two minutes after the second half for the opening goal of the game, which was scored by them. Bryan Cabezas’ goal did seem to spark some life into the match, as we eventually turned up. Lucas Santos, who had just come off the bench, grabbed the equaliser on the hour mark before giving us the lead with his second of the game three minutes later. With our foot firmly on the gas, we made it three with seconds remaining in the game, with Matko Miljevic continuing his fine form with a goal.
Maksim Smirnov - We commented on how tough Arsenal Tula are to beat at the end of last month and they proved to be just that. Limiting them to just a single shot on target and holding the majority of possession, a mix of bad luck and incredible goalkeeping saw the game end 0-0. Remarkably, we hit the woodwork three times in the game, highlighting just how close we came to winning on a number of occasions.
Vadik Vassily - It was a frustrating game to watch and one I am glad is over. But what was more than enjoyable to watch, was our next Champions League game as we faced FC København. It took just four minutes for us to take the lead in Denmark and a special scorer, with Talles Magno getting his first for the club. Denis Dvornikov, an academy graduate, started the game in place of an injured Matko Miljevic and also scored his first for the club. Denis has high expectations placed upon him and he showed he had some immense quality throughout the game, keeping himself well composed in a massive Champions League match at just seventeen years of age. Striker, Michael Santos pulled one back for the Danish Champions but we never looked worried and it was Talles Magno who scored the final goal, to make it a brace for him. Another three points on the board and with two home games to follow we are in a great place to gain qualification.
Maksim Smirnov - We truly are, and it was great to see Magno get his first, and second for the club against København as he was starting to see some criticism. He put any worries about his ability to bed in the next game as well, scoring once again inside ten minutes to open the scoring against Sochi. Jesús Vallejo made it two having got on the end of a Ivan Oblyakov corner before Fedor Chalov scored his first of the month to ensure a three goal lead. They managed a consolation goal but that was all as we comfortably ran out 3-1 winners.
Vadik Vassily - Then came possibly the worst game we have played under Luke Hendricks and potentially Igor Akinfeev’s last in a CSKA shirt. It took just one minute for Krasnodar to open the scoring against our heavily rotated side, with Igor completely missing a corner allowing Uros Spajic to tap in to an open net. It didn’t get any better from then, with Krasnodar having a three goal lead inside fifteen minutes, and the fourth was scored just before the half-time whistle. The whole team was stunned and Luke seemed ready to explode with anger. It was an abysmal display from the team and a real humbling experience for them.
Maksim Smirnov - It was, Luke came out after the game and apologised for how his team played and club captain Igor Akinfeev also apologised for his own mistakes throughout the game. It is a real shame to see Igor seemingly losing all ability this season. He was key in a number of games just last year in helping us to the league title when he kept sixteen clean sheets. This season he has managed just three in eleven games and has conceded a worrying fourteen goals, whilst conceding four in two different games this season. It is a shame to see his final season with the club coming down like this, it really is.
Vadik Vassily - You are right Maksim, it really is. No matter what though, he is a club legend and always will be. That loss was our first since September last year and having gone a previous 396 days without a competitive domestic loss, we bounced back well against Baltika Kaliningrad. Fedor Chalov, Zlatan Sehovic and a Matko Miljevic penalty was enough to give us the victory despite Vitaliy Pryndeta adding one for them. It could have been a much larger scoreline, with us hitting the woodwork another three times for the second time in a month. But the victory was secured nonetheless.
Maksim Smirnov - Correct, and it keeps us top of the league, with a six point gap on Zenit, however, they do have a game in hand. But the club is continuing to move in the right direction and this is highlighted by further improvements to the clubs facilities. It was clear our data analyst facilities were nowhere near acceptable standards and Luke made it clear to the board he wanted those upgraded, something the board agreed with. It shows progression and we can be excited about what this club could be coming to in the coming years.
Vadik Vassily - Something else that we can be excited about is the number of internationals we have in the squad now, with two more being given international debuts in the international break just gone. Roman Yengenjev and Magomed-Shapi Suleimanov were both given debuts against Portugal and Slovakia respectively. That means seven of our players are in the Russian national team at this point, with Spartak Moscow closest to that number with four. Igor Diveev also had something to celebrate in the international break, scoring his first goal for the nation against Slovakia, a great moment for him.
Maksim Smirnov - One of those Russian Internationals, is Ivan Oblyakov, who has been in spectacular form once again this month. The central midfielder, who is gaining interest from the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Barcelona, helped the team this month with four assists. Another player who has improved tremendously under Luke, Ivan is looking to break his assist record set last season of fifteen. Already sat on eight for this year, adding three goals, that could well be done.
Vadik Vassily - You are not wrong Maksim, he could very well break that record with half the season still to be played. However, that will mean we need to keep him at the club through the January window, which could be easier said than done. He is a brilliant talent and like you said, Barcelona are interested in him. They are a club with a lot of resources and we may see another situation like we have with Nikola Vlasic and Arnór Sigurðsson arise. But for now we should celebrate that he is an incredible player who is helping us to much success at the moment. Our player of the month for October, Ivan Oblyakov.
Maksim Smirnov - Well deserving of that award and we will need him to continue that form going into the final month of the domestic year. We start the month off with the return game against FC København whilst later in the month we also welcome Benfica in the Champions League. It is possible for us to secure a First Round Knockout spot in those games which would be a massive achievement for this team. In between those two are home matches against Krylya Sovetov, with the match unlikely to see a similar scoreline to the first game we played against them this season, and Yenisey Krasnoyarsk. Following the Benfica game, we can extend our lead at the top of the league with a victory over Zenit St. Petersburg with that being our final league game before the winter break.
Vadik Vassily - It’ll be a good month I think. I see us beating København again whilst we really should be beating Sovetov and Yenisey in the league. Assuming Chelsea beat Benfica and we do beat København, we will need just a point over Benfica to qualify for the First Knockout Round, so I am very hopeful of that. The final game of the month will be massive, it could take us six points ahead and going into the second half of the season, we will have a lot of confidence in winning our second title on the bounce.
Maksim Smirnov - It would be a great lead to have, especially since we would have played Zenit twice at that point. For now though, we have come to the end of this month's review, thank you for watching, goodbye.
*Taken from the CSKA Armiya Youtube Channel 30th October 2021*
Replies
Wolf:The group is going very well so far, very happy. Thank you!
Scott:Despite another league slip up this month it seems like Zenit couldn't capitalize, thankfully. We also had the luck that the worst performance we've had was in the cup.
Jack: It was a shame to lose to them due to a two minute spell but the best teams take those moments and it is something we need to learn from.
James:That was probably our best performance of the month funnily enough. That gif was certainly me watching the Krasnodar game.
Griffo:That's a Zenit move to be bribing
Not us!
tedbro:It certainly looks like that could be right! A massive result!
Zed:Matko is some player and I think with Champions League player we could attract even higher level of player! It's a massive deal to progress!
All things considered, the cup exit really doesn't matter once you're flying in the league as you are doing.
