"We plan to build a new 12,000-seat stadium by 2030"

Yaroslavl "Locomotive" won the Gagarin Cup for the second year in a row. In the sixth match of the final series, the Railwaymen beat Ak Bars Kazan 3-2 on the road. Mikhail Evraev, Governor of the Yaroslavl Region, who attended the decisive meeting, witnessed the historic success of the team. After the award ceremony, he shared his emotions from the triumph of Lokomotiv, and also spoke about plans to build a new stadium for Shinnik football club that meets the requirements of the Russian Premier League.

— Shortly before the decisive game in Kazan, you wrote on your social media channels that you had taken a two-day vacation to attend the match in the capital of Tatarstan.

— Well, how could you not go to such a match? The decisive game of the KHL playoff finals. That's why I went to support the guys, to support the team. A year ago, the last game of the season was held here in Yaroslavl, when Lokomotiv won its first Gagarin Cup. Now he's done it on the road. But the main thing is that we are champions. The guys are great fellows. Three finals in a row, two of them victorious — the score is 2:1 in our favor (smiles). I think this is the level of the team.

— How did you feel about the departure of head coach Igor Nikitin from Lokomotiv to CSKA a year ago? Was it important to repeat the success without him?

— It's always important for us to win. If we are in sports, then we need to win. So I think all the guys in the team were motivated to win. And their responsibility was very high. Thanks to this, we won.

— Did you communicate with the management of Lokomotiv a year ago about Nikitin's departure? Is there any understanding why he left under the current two-year contract?

— I have an understanding, but I think it's not worth taking it in vain now. I just need to say a huge thank you to Igor Valeryevich Nikitin for the victory last year. We went ahead and are now moving on.

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Lokomotiv goalkeeper Daniil Isaev talks about the influence of the new staff on the second victory in the Gagarin Cup and his playoff game

— Last summer, a big scandal was caused by the fact that Nikitin and his assistants were not awarded the traditional championship rings by Lokomotiv after the entire staff left for CSKA. How did they react to this story?

— I think this is not a question for me. It's better to ask the club's management. Personally, I am always grateful to those who lead us to victory, with whom we go to victory.

— With what emotions did you watch the semifinal series between Lokomotiv and Avangard, when Yaroslavl lost 0-2 in the sixth match 33 seconds before the end, was on the verge of relegation, but equalized the score, and then won the last two games in the second overtime?

— Those were the sharp moments. But everyone saw that we can win like this, that the team will do everything to win. And all this is thanks to the support of the fans, who help the team both at home and away, even if you look at the huge number of fans who came to Kazan for the last match.

— Are there any plans to raise football in Yaroslavl so that Shinnik returns to the RPL?

— Of course, there are such plans. But you need to build a stadium for that. That's what we're doing.

— Last summer, there were rumors that the current Shinnik stadium was going to be demolished, and the bank's head office would be built in its place in the center of Yaroslavl.

— You are right to say that this is a rumor. It is not true. A new stadium will be built there. In the same place where the current stadium is located.

— What is the construction time?

— By 2030. The 12,000-seat stadium.

— So you're going to build it according to RPL standards?

— Not only to the standards of the RPL, but also for international matches. 12 thousand is a sufficient capacity for this. In general, there will be a new modern stadium in the same place.