"We don't do nonsense in the national team"

CSKA Moscow leads the Russian championship after 11 rounds. In this capacity, the army team went on a two-week break in the tournament related to the national team games. Just before the break, CSKA managed to win the crucial Moscow derby with Spartak (3:2). The gap from the closest pursuers — Moscow "Locomotive" and "Krasnodar" — is only one point.

Meanwhile, five CSKA players have been called up for the upcoming matches of the Russian national team against Iran and Bolivia: defenders Igor Diveev, Danil Krugovoy, Matvey Lukin, as well as midfielders Matvey Kislyak and Ivan Oblyakov.

In an interview with Izvestia, Danil Krugovoy commented on the success in the derby, told who could prevent CSKA from competing for the championship gold, and also gave a forecast for the upcoming matches of the national team.

— Is the result of the derby with Spartak natural?

— Yes, I think we deserved to win. It wasn't easy, but it was good that we started well and realized our chances. We had a good first half overall. It was already more difficult in the second, but we defended well. And even though Spartak scored two goals and reduced the gap to a minimum, we deserved to win.

— Spartak could still have equalized when Milan Gajic pulled the ball out of an empty net. What emotions did you experience at that moment?

— Of course, I'm proud of him. Just pride.

— Was there a desire to surpass the Dynamo – Lokomotiv derby (3:5) in terms of the number of goals?

- no. There was a desire to win. That was all I thought about.

— How did you react to Igor Akinfeev's injury during the match with Spartak?

— It's a shame that Igor Vladimirovich dropped out. I didn't even notice it right away, because Spartak scored the second goal just before his injury. Then I looked back and saw that he was lying on the field. But it's good that we managed to keep the winning score after his injury. We are waiting for Akinfeev on the field as soon as possible — I hope the injury is not serious.

— But in general, did CSKA and Spartak manage to give a more solid performance than Dynamo and Lokomotiv?

— These are two different derbies. I think there was more intensity in our derby.

Immersed in the derby: The RPL tour turned out to be rich in two bright Moscow matches

CSKA's victory over Spartak, Lokomotiv's victory over Dynamo, Akhmat's first loss under Cherchesov, Zenit's unexpected misfire

— In a little over a year of playing for CSKA, have you already become imbued with the principles and atmosphere of the Spartak derby?

— Yes, it is clear that this is the main derby of the country. There are always special emotions from him. And a special attitude towards this confrontation. Therefore, the impressions from such victories as in the last match are especially positive.

— Are the games against Spartak more principled than against Zenit, which you have played for for many years?

— The CSKA –Spartak derby is the main confrontation in Russian football. And the confrontation with Zenit is more personal.

— Is CSKA's leadership deserved after 11 rounds?

— Yes, I think we deserve to be at the top of the table in terms of the game. But we try not to focus on this, because only a third of the championship has been completed.

— Who do you consider to be the main and most dangerous competitor for CSKA in the fight for first place?

— I think it's ourselves. Because if we play the same way as we did in the first two months of the season and in the last two league matches, against Spartak and Baltika (1-0), then everything will be great. But don't put the emphasis on the first place. There is still a long season ahead and many more interesting things. I hope we can achieve what we want. In the meantime, we try to go from game to game and score points in each match.

"I'll rate the start of the Baltika season at five with a minus"

Ravil Izmailov, CEO of the Kaliningrad club, spoke about the team's results in the first ten rounds of the Russian Premier League, its position in the leading group and the inclusion of players in the expanded list of the Russian national team.

— You didn't play much in the spring under Nikolic, but you became one of the leaders of the team under Celestini. Can we say that Fabio's 4-3-3 playing pattern suits you better than Marco's rhombus?

— Well, of course, it's more convenient. Because more attacks are coming through the flanks. And it's interesting. I always liked to lock down the flank, and then go forward from it and finish the attack.

— What are your expectations from staying with the Russian national team?

— The most positive, as always. I am very happy to be called up to the national team again. I always come to it with pleasure. Now we have two interesting matches against good opponents. We are looking forward to them.

— How do you react when such a large number of players are called up from CSKA?

— Of course, it's good that a lot of our players are involved.

— Is their absence from the CSKA training process not a problem for the club?

— But we also get playing time in the national team. And we train there. It's not like we're dealing with nonsense in the national team. So there are no problems in this regard.