"We didn't expect to go so far in the Russian Cup"

The main sensation of the current Russian Football Cup draw was the performance of the Kuban Holding club from the village of Pavlovskaya in the Krasnodar Territory. She plays in the amateur division B of the second league, the fourth most powerful Russian championship after the RPL, the first league and the Division A of the second league. Kuban Holding reached the sixth round of the Path of the Regions, knocking out Pyatigorsk Mashuk-KMV from Division A (3:0), and then defeating representatives of the first league — Ulyanovsk Volga (2:2, 8:7 on penalties) and Novorossiysk Chernomorets (2:1).

This week, the team could have passed another first league club, Torpedo Moscow. She lost to him only in a penalty shootout (1:3) after a draw in regular time (1:1). If successful, Kuban Holding could play with the representative of the Kaliningrad RPL, Baltika. Dmitry Fomin, the father of Daniil Fomin, a midfielder of the Russian national team and captain of Dynamo Moscow, works as the head coach of the team from the village of Pavlovskaya. In an interview with Izvestia, he assessed the club's results in the Russian Cup, talked about the chances of rising to the silver group of the Second league Division A and appreciated the influence of former Ufa head coach Vadim Evseev on his son's career.

— Are you satisfied with your team's performance in the Russian Cup?

— Now, after the fact, there is disappointment from the match with Torpedo that we lost the penalty shootout. It's a shame when success is so close. But the players still have my immense gratitude. We played very well. They looked unimpressive in the first half, but they looked great in the second and could have scored more goals by winning in regular time. It didn't work out, but when we started this path in the Russian Cup, we didn't expect to get this far. So we will draw conclusions from these matches. Now we need to finish the championship with dignity — there are four more games ahead. We will try to reach the first place.

— By the way your team played against Chernomorets and Torpedo, can we say that you would not have been lost at the level of the first and second leagues?

— It's hard for me to say because we didn't play with the representatives of the second league. But I think that in those games that you listed, we proved that we can compete with any opponent. Maybe not at a distance, but in individual matches. Whether it's the first league, or the silver and gold of the second league. We looked pretty good in the matches against the teams of the first league. And it's a shame that we didn't win the penalty shootout against Torpedo.

— What are the ambitions of the Kuban Holding management? Do you want to repeat the success of Chaika from Peschanokopsky, a village in the neighboring Rostov region, which has been playing in the first league for several years?

— It is difficult for me to speak for our leadership. But the club is developing gradually. He is only 10 years old this year. And what Kuban Holding is doing in terms of the same infrastructure is worth a lot. And not only for the main team, but also for the academy. We believe that there are quite a lot of talented young football players in the Krasnodar Territory, whom we can develop at our club. Last year, there were quite a few young people in our team — many of these players went to a higher level. Therefore, the development is proceeding systematically. I can't say that the leadership demands here and now to go to the "silver" of the second league, but I don't think they will give up this option if we go there on a sporting basis. Yes, it will be difficult to get there this year — there is very little left until the end of the championship, and we are five points behind the competitors. But if we can win them back, then hardly anyone in the club will refuse to be promoted. We have the opportunity to do this.

— What are the conditions at this level in terms of player salaries?

— I would not like to comment on the salaries of our players, but they are small. Another thing is that we have excellent living conditions — in terms of the training process, nutrition, and accommodation. We can afford to videotape training sessions and analyze them, clearly explaining to the players what they are doing right and what they are not. And it helps them to progress. So the conditions are good. We are doing everything to ensure that our young players improve. And many of them performed well in the Russian Cup, including in the match against Torpedo. I know that some of them have offers from other clubs. And the moment is not far off when they will move to a higher level.

— And logistics? Considering that an airport was recently opened in Krasnodar for the first time since February 2022, can your team afford to fly planes on relatively long trips?

— When we first started playing in the second league in 2021 at a professional level, we flew to Makhachkala by plane. So this is a small problem for our managers.

— Did you and your son discuss the possibility of playing against each other if Kuban Holding got to Dynamo Moscow?

— In fact, according to the grid of the current Russian Cup, the winner of the next round match "Paths of the Regions" Torpedo – Baltika goes to the loser in the quarterfinal pair "Paths of the Regions" Zenit – Dynamo (Moscow). That is, two steps were not enough for us to meet Dania on the edge of the football field. We should have won the penalty shootout against Torpedo, then tried to beat Baltika, and then... We don't know who we would play next, because unfortunately we won't play next. (He smiles.)

— Have you talked a lot with the coaches who worked with Daniil at the RPL level? Have they often consulted with you on how best to use your son's strengths?

— No one has ever consulted. As for the relationship... I am very grateful to Vadim Valentinovich Evseev, who was the first to believe in Danya and called him himself, saying that he was counting on him. Therefore, when there was a choice between going to Ufa or to another club from which there was an offer, the factor that Evseev, Ufa's head coach, was interested in Daniil's transfer affected. I am grateful to him for this. And even though we have now passed his Chernomorets in the Russian Cup, I am sure that Evseev is a strong specialist. And I wish him only good luck in his coaching career.