“At Spartak, under Mironov, under Grishin, it was not clear what the coach wanted.” Mayorov – about leapfrogging at the headquarters of the “red-white”

On Sunday “Spartacus” changed head coach again. Igor Grischine left the team voluntarily (official version) to return to Khimik. His place was taken by Alexei Zavarukhin, who worked as his assistant.

Spartak’s current head coach change is the second this season. Grishin took over the post on November 12, replacing Boris Mironov. His contract was calculated until the end of the championship with a possible extension. However, it had to be interrupted.

The reason for the resignation was the unsuccessful match of the “red-whites” in the last matches. Spartak lost four meetings in a row, including rivals, where, in theory, they were supposed to take points ironically: Sochi, Kunlun, Neftekhimik. The club fell to ninth place in the Western Conference and seriously doubted playoff participation.

What is the main problem of the Moscow team, which in the middle of the season – just after the arrival of Grishin – seemed to recover and conceded a long series of victories?

“Any team can be coached”

– I do not exclude the possibility that Grishin really made the decision to leave the team, – said Boris Mayorov. – There are no results. The new “Spartak” in November began, then everything returned to normal. Again, an expressionless game and, even worse, a completely incomprehensible team building. So, you can’t take points in matches where you just have to win.

– Spartak have changed coaches twice this season. What is the root of the problem – are the specialists bad or is the team so weak that no one will get along with it?

Any team can be trained. The team must play in such a way that I, sitting on the podium, can see what the coach wants and how the players follow his instructions. Under Mironov, under Grishin, I don’t understand what Spartak is playing.

Take Severstal, Amur, Minsk Dynamo. Are the numbers there stronger than those of Spartak? But, looking at them, I can easily tell how the team is playing, what they want, what tactics they are using. At Spartak, the game absolutely does not build throughout the season. Whatever its composition, the team must be trained. And Spartak is now almost the only team in the KHL that is absolutely inexpressive in terms of tactical schemes. Hence the lack of results.

– But there was a successful push under Grishin, the team started to win.

– This is a common occurrence when changing head coaches. Of course, Grishin has something of his own, different from Mironov. Yet a person has been working in hockey for a long time, even if it’s not in the KHL. New elements were introduced to the game, and based on this, Spartak experienced a resurgence. But not for long.

“There is nothing to complain about Khokhlacheva, but the playing discipline is lame”

– Compared to last season, the team has weakened considerably. Do you agree?

– Of course, Spartak lost a number of players who brought results. The same Sergey Shirokov, regardless of age, remains a goalscoring striker, who now shows high performance in Avtomobilist.

I’m not talking about Alexander Nikishin, who was sent to SKA. Although I’m sure Nikishin alone wouldn’t have pulled the team.

“Not quite alone. There are also Alexander Khokhlachov and Andrey Loktionov in Spartak’s attack. At the KHL level, they are very well known forwards.

– There is nothing to complain about Khokhlacheva. This is how he confirms his status – he is among the top ten scorers in the championship. It is commendable. But the rest of the players should help him in some way. And it is not, because the game is not built. That’s where it all comes from. We lose against Sochi and Neftekhimik.

– What still hurts your eyes in the game “Spartacus”?

– Game discipline. In almost every game, Spartak players have more penalty time than their opponents. This can partly be explained by a lack of competence. If the opponent is stronger, he faults you. But it’s not just that. Obviously, discipline on the ice is flawed.

– By the way, how do you find Spartak’s play in uneven formations?

“Most of them have nothing to do with it. And the main problem starts when entering a foreign zone. “Spartak” cannot do it normally and quickly.

For comparison, I recently watched the game between SKA and Lokomotiv. The teams immediately enter the area and within two minutes the majority manage to take ten shots on goal. In this case, the goalkeeper must be interfered with. And “Spartak” cannot enter the zone in order to launch a positional attack by majority.

The minority is also small. If you are not so hot what composition, there are three whales – tactics, majority and minority. It is necessary to pay special attention to this, to get the most out of the game in uneven alignments.

– In the first half of the season, Andrey Markov worked in the Spartak coaching staff, he was responsible for the majority. Was he fired for the case?

“With or without Markov, I haven’t seen any change. All the problems that were under Mironov remained under Grishin. I don’t know who specifically makes all these personnel decisions.

“Spartak’s season failed”

– Were there any external factors that could negatively affect Spartak’s play in December and January?

– Yes there is. For example, during the New Year holidays, the team played nine away games. I haven’t played for a whole month! It is an abnormal phenomenon.

Well, Avangard spent the whole month of September on the road – such was the desire of the club itself, which was waiting for the commissioning of its new palace in Omsk. But why did Spartak suffer? “Megasport” gave under the performance of Tatyana Navka. But why could several matches not be played in the small Luzhniki arena? They say the KHL didn’t accept it due to technical parameters. I think here it was possible to make an exception due to force majeure. Because they also influenced the result. After all, traveling is a constant inconvenience, the impossibility of recovering normally after matches.

– Under Alexei Zavarukhin, can anything change? Or is the current coaching change more of a gesture of desperation?

– I think Spartak’s season failed. Theoretically, the chances of reaching the playoffs remain. But in light of recent results, it’s hard to believe. As a Spartak veteran, I mentally prepared for the fact that at the beginning of March I would “go on vacation”, that our veteran box in Megasport would close until next season.

Yes, even if the team takes eighth place. He will come out in the first round at SKA. What are the odds there? With the current game, Spartak is simply doomed. He won nothing in the playoffs.

As for Zavarukhin personally, I don’t know him at all as a coach. I think that’s a temporary number – until the end of this championship.

– Which of the well-known specialists do you see as Spartak’s head coach?

– In terms of work and results, our coaching market is very poor. The same people rotate in the KHL. Well, we don’t know Tambiev, Leontiev, Kravets or Martemyanov? This season, however, Viktor Kozlov appeared, who directed Salavat Yulaev. Let’s just hope someone else shows up.

– Dmitry Kvartalnov comes to mind personally. Could he work for Spartak?

– Kvartalnov is a well-known figure, although the attitude towards him due to his working methods is not entirely warm. At the same time, at CSKA, he was very close to winning the Gagarin Cup. But this specialist has been free since the start of the season. If the Spartak management wanted to see him in the team, the offer to the coach would have already been made. Apparently he doesn’t like something.

Although if you are already looking at next season, you should start it with a team strategy. And already below to invite a specific specialist. Spartak has to decide what it wants? Or just jump in the championship, fight for the Cup or just pass the season one way or another. Let’s go to the playoffs – well, we’re not going out – to hell with that. Or, after receiving nine promising players from SKA in exchange for Nikishin, start building a young team for growth. A clear and understandable strategy is essential! And if you just take players and demand they go to the playoffs, it doesn’t always work.

Watch live broadcasts of KHL matches on the federal channel and thematic channels of the holding, as well as on the sites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.