“Is it harder to win or keep a championship title? I’ll tell you next year.” Interview with Sergei Karasev

– How did you spend your summer? Were you able to recover?

– It was a nice summer season. I managed to enjoy the victory, relax and train. At the end of the holidays, I missed basketball, I wanted to resume the training process. In general, I had two months of individual training.

– Wounds don’t bother?

– No, thank God, everything is fine. Just in the summer I was engaged in restoration after minor damage. Now in full combat readiness.

– Don’t you feel that with age it is more difficult to regain strength and join the new season?

– This question should be asked to Vitaly Valerievich Fridzon (Laughs). I get stronger every year. I’m still 28 years old, I have a desire, an inner momentum, I want to play. I come back even hungrier. I want to win and win!

– Many new players have appeared in the Zenit team. Have you been able to meet and play?

We communicate with all the guys. Trey (Tompkins) knew that before. We got to know everyone, everyone is adequate, we try to help them in training and off the pitch. I hope we will play. The first friendly match has already been played, it showed that we had potential. Now, in every training session, in every match, we will improve.

– Can you recapture last year’s success with the new team?

– With any team you can. We have experienced guys, the backbone of the Russians has been preserved from that year, there are legionnaires hungry for victory. The trainer will put all the pieces of the puzzle together into one picture. If everyone on the team is doing their best and following the coach’s instructions, there’s every chance.

– A question so banal, but so necessary: ​​is it more difficult to win or keep the title?

It’s hard to tell until you hold it. If you ask a question next year, I can answer it. But I think it’s harder to keep than to win. You are a champion, they expect the same success from you, it becomes emotionally more difficult.

I see you have a lot of tattoos on your body. Many are dedicated to family, but are there any made in honor of basketball?

– Here’s a new tattoo, here’s a mug. Everything else is stuffed in honor of the family. Each tattoo means something to me.

– Then I wish you to fill your whole body with cups.

– No, the whole body does not want yet (Laughs). But round two probably will be.

– Since we are talking about family, what role does your spouse play in your career?

– Of course, the woman supports. The eldest daughter is also sick, even the youngest begins to understand what is happening. They give me an incredible charge of emotions. There are gripes on some sides, but I think it happens in every family. Also, my wife understands basketball. I am happy that next to me there is such a person who pushes me forward, helps me to develop.

– You, as the son of a basketball player, you had no chance of not becoming an athlete. What are your plans for your children? Do they play sports?

However, I have daughters. I wouldn’t want them to go to basketball. Now they are engaged in gymnastics, horseback riding, languages, in winter – skiing. When they grow up, let them decide for themselves which direction to go. My main task is to put them back on their feet, to educate them.

– Take me to figure skating, now it’s very popular.

– Yes, my wife and I also thought we should give it a try. The girl likes to ride horses. We know it’s hard, but you can try.

“I know you wanted to open a restaurant. Do you have such a dream?

– It is still preserved. Cooking is my hobby. I like cooking. If I liked a dish at the restaurant, I try to cook it at home. I dream of opening a restaurant. I want a small, cozy place by the sea, somewhere abroad. I don’t know how it can be done in the current situation, but there is a dream.

— What are your favorite places in St. Petersburg?

— I like Peter’s gastronomic side. There are many good restaurants here, gastronomy is developed. Probka, Subzero, Grecco, recently opened “Porto 19”, Pio Nero. Very tasty in St. Petersburg, the choice is very wide.

– If you open a restaurant in St. Petersburg, you will face great competition …

– Yes, it will be necessary not only to focus on cooking, but also to introduce entertainment.

– I read that you have only been to football once, when do you plan to return to the Zenit match?

– No longer alone. My wife and I went to the Super Bowl. For some reason I constantly ride Spartak. Hopefully this season can go to other matches.

– Do you communicate with someone from “Zénith” football?

– I communicate with the guys, sometimes we meet at the companies. I spoke with Artem Dzyuba, with Oleg Shatov when he was here, with Sergei Bogdanovich Semak, with Anatoly Timoshchuk. There are common interests, there is something to discuss. I seem to be quite good at football. We try to keep in touch.