Vadim Abramov: "We passed the ball to the opponent and observed what they could do"

After the match between "Pakhtakor" and "Dinamo" (0:1) in the 3rd round of the Super League, the guest team's head coach Vadim Abramov participated in the post-match press conference.

"Everyone saw the game, so it makes no sense to repeat what happened on the field. We had problems with the lineup before the game because the short break affected us. Four of our central defenders could not help the team, so we had to move Stanoyevich to the central defender position. I am grateful to him because he played in this position for the first time and performed his duties well. Therefore, we faced problems in choosing tactics for the game. As for the game, "Pakhtakor" scored from an offside position, but they had no other situations apart from that. We had several opportunities to score in counterattacks. The championship has just started, and I think "Pakhtakor" will still gather their points," said Vadim Abramov after the game.

- What is your overall opinion about Pakhtakor's game? How difficult was it to defend against "Pakhtakor"?
- We slightly changed our tactics due to problems with central defenders, we passed the ball to the opponent and observed what they could do, but they hardly offered anything today. We had an advantage in ball possession, but their attacks were not dangerous. The absence of Pakhtakor's main striker in today's match might have had an impact.

- What do you say about motivation? Did playing against a rival like "Pakhtakor" give your team some extra motivation?
- Every team wants to show itself when playing against leaders, but we did not adopt a special plan for this game. We go out to win in every round; it’s a normal situation. In the next round, we will also face a grand team.

- Will the team be additionally motivated after today's victory?
- No, of course not. If this match had taken place in the fall or had a serious impact on the competition table, we might have considered additional financial incentives. The Super League has just started.

- It seems to me that "Dinamo" is primarily a team that plays well in counterattacks. How much do you agree with this opinion?
- I struggle to communicate with journalists. Before, we were described as an attacking team, but now we have become a team that plays in counterattacks. We choose tactics based on the opponent. In today's game, we aimed to give the ball to the opponent and go for counterattacks. We always strive to play offensively. We made this decision due to the absence of central defenders. We aimed to attack quickly when there were open spaces.

- Can you comment on Marko Stanoyevich's game? The current champion "Nasaf" did not extend his contract with him due to his age...
- We knew who we were buying. Stanoyevich is a team leader and an experienced player.

- Were you not worried about Stanoyevich's age?
- I do not pay attention to the age of a player. If a 16-year-old boy brings benefits on the field, he will take a place in my team. I do not look at the passport. If an older player plays better than younger players, he will be on the field. A player's age may be important for his wife, but not for me.

- Can you also talk about the players who made their debut in the team today? Alohojayev, Ibrohimov, and Safarov made their debuts in today's match.
- It is difficult to say something about them because they came on the field at the end of the game. It is still early to comment; we are just in the third round. If we make big promises, we will be expected to deliver big things. Thanks to our fans who came from Samarkand to support us. Today we were able to make them happy.

- Can you comment on your team's attacking realization? Because "Dinamo" had several good opportunities in counterattacks today. Mirjahon Mirahmadov seemed to be tired after the 70th minute of the second half...
- Mirahmadov did a lot of "dirty work." He helped the defenders and participated in one-on-one battles. Overall, I was satisfied with our game. Now everyone is happy with the feeling of victory. After some time, we will analyze the game and see where we made mistakes.

- Can you evaluate Oybek Ormonjonov's game? I think he had a very good game.
- He got into the game well and was very active. When Alijonov came on for "Pakhtakor," we moved Anvar to the other wing and assigned Ormonjonov the task of neutralizing Alijonov. He did his job well.