Head coach of the Russian national football team Valery Karpin At a press conference, he said he expected a tough match in a friendly against Kenya and spoke about the team selection for the encounter.
The meeting will take place on October 16 in Turkey, starting at 7:00 p.m. (Moscow time). On October 12, the Russian team defeated the Cameroon team with a score of 1:0 in a friendly match.
— What is your idea of the Kenyan national team?
— Compared to Cameroon, there are not many players there who would play in the big championships. They have footballers less known to the general public, but just as powerful and athletic. If we take the game itself, to be honest, I liked Kenya even more. When they have the ball, they look more organized and more coherent than Cameroon who, it seems to me, have built their game more on the individual qualities of the players. Kenya seems to be a better-coached team, so it certainly won’t be easy. If anyone thinks that it will be easy, since this team is not in the top hundred of the FIFA rankings, then they are wrong.
— Is everyone ready for the match?
– Everyone who arrived – 3 goalkeepers and 21 outfield players, are all ready and able to participate in the match.
— Why are we playing with Kenya and in Antalya?
— I take it for granted – they said we would play Kenya, so we would play. As for Antalya, I heard it was due to logistics. It is not very acceptable that the Kenyan national team calls footballers from Europe and takes them to Kenya – it is far away. So there was an option to play in Qatar, in Dubai, but since it’s still quite hot there, we decided to play in Turkey. Plus, it’s not that far from everyone, so it’s convenient for everyone.
— The match against Cameroon was one of the best in recent times, there were a lot of good reviews. Did you feel better mentally after playing this kind of football or did it make no difference?
– Of course, it makes a difference. It’s always nice to win, especially if the football was also better in the episodes than in previous matches. It’s pleasant both morally and even physically: after victories, you are not as tired as after defeats.
— You said there would be a completely different lineup for the match against Kenya…
— Yes, with the exception of Barinov, completely different players will start.
– Can we wait for Dzhikiya tomorrow?
– Yes, you can, if not him, then who?
— Is swimming guaranteed since the team is in Türkiye?
– Of course not. If someone wants to, of course they can. But in a way that was planned, no,” Karpin was quoted as saying by the RFU press service.
Watch the live broadcast of the Russia – Kenya match from 6:40 p.m. (Moscow time) on the channel, matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru sites.
RFU official website
Source : MatchTV
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