The British Frontier: what awaits Russian players in the European Cup semi-finals

The first semi-final matches in three club tournaments begin this week: the Champions League, the Europa League and the Conference League. And in two of them, Russian football players continue to fight for the title. In particular, goalkeepers. Read more about what awaits Russian legionnaires in the Izvestia article.

Matvey Safonov (PSG, France)

Both PSG and Arsenal can be fully focused on the fight for the big-eared trophy, because there is nothing left to catch in the championship. However, the situations are different: the Parisians became the champions of France ahead of schedule, and the Londoners will no longer be the best in England — Liverpool took the title this season four rounds before the finish of the Premier League.

At the same time, it cannot be said that PSG looked convincing at this Champions League distance: with the exception of the defeat of their compatriots from Brest." (3:0, 7:0) The other two rivals had a real opportunity to knock the Parisians out of the cup. Liverpool only went through a penalty shootout after 1-1 on aggregate, and Aston Villa fought back and almost made a sensation by winning 3-2 after losing 1-3 in the first game.

Arsenal went the distance more confidently: they defeated Dutch PSV first. (7:1, 2:2), and in the quarterfinals, he caused a sensation by beating Real Madrid." (3:0, 2:1). And the "taking out" of the "king of the Champions League" will clearly give Arsenal an additional emotional charge.

Unfortunately, the chances of Safonov playing in at least one of the matches against Arsenal are close to zero. It is unlikely that PSG head coach Luis Enrique will resort to goalkeeper rotation at such an important stage against a serious opponent. Obviously, the gates of Parisians will be defended by Italian Gianluigi Donnarumma until the end of the tournament, even though questions sometimes arise about him. Nevertheless, experience and individual skill come to the fore here. And both of these indicators will objectively be slightly higher for Gigi than for Matthew.

Goalkeeper of the year: Safonov in the semifinals, Khaykin is one step away from this achievement

The Norwegian club "Bude-Glimt" can create the main sensation of the European Cup season

Anyway, the Russian's personal contribution to PSG's long journey in the Champions League should not be forgotten. Take the same victory over the Spanish "Girona" in the first round of the general stage, where Safonov played to zero.

But even with Donnarumma in the PSG goal, it will be very difficult against Arsenal. And it is clearly not worth classifying the French as favorites in advance. Some bookmakers consider Arsenal to be the favorite in the first game. And it can give the British a good advantage over flying to France if they don't slow down and overdo it, making a number of mistakes.

The PSG – Arsenal matches will be held on April 29 and May 7.

Nikita Khaykin (Bude-Glimt, Norway)

Nikita Khaykin, our second goalkeeper and the last of the two Russians left in the fight for the European Cup, will also fight with the British to reach the finals. Only the Europa League and, unlike Safonov, full-time.

Khaykin played all Buda-Glimt matches in this Europa League draw and became the hero of the second leg of the 1/4 final against Italian Lazio in Rome. The Eagles won back from 0:2 after the first match, moved the game to extra time, but in the penalty shootout they were powerless in front of the Russian goalkeeper. Khaykin deflected two shots from the Lazio players, and they smeared the third one themselves. Bude-Glimt made one less mistake, therefore, it passed to the next round.

The previous successes of the Norwegians in the current European league campaign also did not come easy to them: in the first round of the Buda-Glimt, the Dutch Twente passed only in extra time of the return leg, and in the second, the Greek Olympiacos passed only thanks to success on their own field (3:0) — in Greece, the Norwegians lost 1:2., but in total it was enough to pass on.

Four in the league: what awaits Russian players in the quarterfinals of European competitions

Matvey Safonov's PSG will play with Aston Villa in the Champions League, and Nikita Khaikin's Buda-Glimt will play with Lazio in the Europa League.

Now, Khaykin and the company will have to fight a more serious rival, the English Tottenham. However, now he seems serious only on paper. In fact, we have a humiliating 16th place in the English Premier League. But to some extent, the league standings give Spurs a free hand in terms of focusing on the fight for entry into the Champions League. Tottenham still have a chance to qualify for the Champions League if they win the Europa League. But to do this, you must first go through the "Buda-Glimt", and then the winner of the Manchester United –Athletic Bilbao pair.

On the way to Buda-Glimt, the team from London was not very confident. Firstly, it avoided the playoff round and immediately advanced to the 1/8 finals, where the Dutch AZ Alkmaar won back from 0:1 in the return leg (3:1). In the quarterfinals, Spurs faced German Eintracht Frankfurt and also achieved victory in only one of the two meetings — 1-0 away after 1-1 at home.

And even though the Norwegians will compete with a representative of one of the strongest club championships in the world, the chances of passage do not seem so slim. And Bude-Glimt has already proved that it is ready for anything, and therefore it definitely does not intend to retreat.

The Buda-Glimt – Tottenham matches will be held on May 1 and 8.