"There was no maladjustment in Nicaragua"

In the match of the Russian national football team against Nicaragua (3-1), our team had several debutants on the field. Among them is Maxim Petrov, a midfielder from Kaliningrad. The 25-year-old came on as a substitute in the 67th minute. It was his first match for the national team and his first call-up to it. He may also play against Mali on March 31.

Petrov played in the First League a year ago. But this RPL season, he is one of the leaders of Baltika, sensationally competing for medals in the Russian championship. In an interview with Izvestia, Maxim shared his emotions from his debut for the national team, explained why it was so difficult to beat far from the strongest national team, and commented on the recent scandal with Baltika head coach Andrei Talalaev. At the end of the match with CSKA, he found himself in the epicenter of a scuffle with army player Carmo and their head coach Fabio Celestini.

— What are the emotions from debuting for the Russian national team?

— What kind of emotions can there be in such a situation? The same as everyone else's. They're just incredible. I am very happy, very happy to play for the national team of my country. Probably, every Russian football player aspires to this. And I am very happy now that I have managed to achieve this.

— Many people thought that victory would be easy for China, especially Vietnam (4:0) and China (5:0). Surprised by the current opponent?

— Yes, the opponent surprised me. He's well-trained, a very combative team. Probably, in every single combat, his players tried to keep up with us. Plus, they put a lot of pressure on us, we have to give them their due. Not a bad opponent.

— Was there an underestimation of Nick Ra gua's coma?

— I can't answer for all our players, but we were seriously set up for this match. We were all very determined, because it doesn't matter what kind of opponent you have. Therefore, there is no under-tuning. We just didn't get into the game right away.

— The coaching staff of the Russian national team has been constantly paying attention to the Baltic players since the fall. Mingiyan Beveyev is constantly playing for the national team, Maxim Borisko is playing for turnout, he was brought into the expanded squad, and now he has been released onto the field. How many of our club's players are motivated by the fact that the success of Baltika does not pass by the national team?

— Well, it's very nice when people pay attention to us like that. We only want to justify this trust and grow further, so that we can fully gain a foothold in the Russian national team.

— Who is the next candidate for the national team from Kaliningrad?

— Ask Valery Georgievich Karpin about this.

— Can you recommend it to someone first?

— We have a very balanced team there. Therefore, everyone could get on the list.

— How was it playing next to the players of the European top champions of the same (French) - Matvey Safonov from PSG and Alexander Golovin from Monaco?

— Of course, they are top-level players and stand out from the rest. It's nice to be on the football field with them and play on the same team. I haven't been able to get to know them properly yet. We've only been training together for three days, and on the fourth, it's already a game. Therefore, we haven't talked closely yet, but during training we exchanged words about the game, and the same Golovin told me certain things.

— How would you comment on the recent episode at the end of the Baltika match against CSKA (1-0), when, after the ball went out, Andrei Talalaev knocked it onto the podium, the army player Karmo snapped at your head coach, after which a massive brawl began involving the players and coaches of both teams?

— Yes, it was emotions. I was there too, in that scuffle. I think Carmo was wrong. You can't attack your elders like that. But in any case, we are one team, we always have a mountain behind us. Therefore, as soon as we saw that a fight had started between Andrey Viktorovich and Carmo, we immediately went there to stand up for our coach.

"Gusev compared his broadcasts with chocolates"

Rodina football player Stanislav Bessmertny — about the jokes of the Dynamo Moscow head coach, the struggle to reach the RPL and the team's readiness

— Is there no feeling that it was that la la eve who provoked all this?

— It is difficult for me to speak for Andrey Viktorovich. I repeat, I think Carmo was wrong. To be honest, I didn't expect this fight at all. I thought he was going to take another ball and throw it out. But, apparently, emotions prevailed. Maybe because it was already the end of the match, CSKA needed to fight back. So someone's nerves couldn't stand it. Things happen.

— Talalaev was disqualified for this episode for four RPL matches. At the same time, he has recently served a three-match suspension. How do you like playing without your head coach at training camp?

— Well, he's been with us all week, supervising training, conducting theoretical classes. He's not with the team only at games. But there are his assistants there who do everything well.