If You Don't Score...
By Gameweek 19, Lokomotiv had a 10-game unbeaten run and a 7-game uninterrupted clean sheet, including a Cup clash. So hosting an outsider, the Railwaymen counted only on a victory.
That's why in the first half the team rushed forward, powered by the desire to score. The game abounded in spectacular combinations, dangerous attacks, powerful strikes, and stunning saves. A goal by Lokomotiv would look natural, but it didn't happen, though there's been a plenty of opportunities.
On 4 minutes Skuletic took a solid strike from the edge of the box but Jan Mucha tipped the ball out. Then Boussofa served the ball to Corluka who had to simply head it home but unexplainably failed. Somebody tried to drive it in again but the shot shook the woodwork.
This tuned the hosts to more attacks. The Railwaymen were determined to test Mucha from every angle. The Gunners who love attacking play had to review their priorities and stay on their third. Although this didn’t help to keep the Red-Greens all out.
On 22 minutes Fernandes made use of the flank play and crossed into the area where Samedov headed the ball goalwards but Mucha’s incredible reflexes helped him keep the goal intact.
Lokomotiv could smell the goal and were doing their best to score, making risky passes and dribbling the ball. Boussoufa was especially active when he dummied two opponents and tried his luck but the left-footer went a bit wide.
On 26 minutes Kasaev shook off his markers and crossed into the box, counting to find Skuletic. The Serb decided to work the ball and enter the area but Mucha fisted it out for another corner.
Soon Alexander Samedov ‘forgot’ to strike. Sasha set up for himself leaving the defenders gazing but mistimed his shot and had to pass back and lose advantage.
On 37 minutes Kasaev centered and had a go at the far corner but the Slovakian keeper again tipped the ball out. The Gunners entered our area just once in the first half, but Tesak sent the ball to row Z. On the whole, Arsenal had to try hard to ward off our attacks.
And there was something Dmitriy Alenichev did during the break because it was a totally different Arsenal on the field in the second half. This seemed to take Lokomotiv by surprise, the Red-Greens were simply not ready for such a transformation.
On 56 minutes Sergey Kuznetsov went for glory from outside the area but Guilherme was okay. Soon Khagush and Lyakh had a go, but to no avail. And yet the visitors were luckier than Lokomotiv in the first half - the half-time sub Alexander Zotov found a through pass at the far post and made the score 0:1.
The conceded goal was a blow to the Railwaymen who didn’t even manage to restore possession quickly. However, on 75 minutes Lokomotiv responded with a fantastic goal by Yanbaev that was cancelled because a linesman had seen the defender offside.
Much can be written about the last minutes, the chances were many. But we didn’t capitalize on them. Several times you could say it would be a goal but it wasn’t. Roman Pavlyuchenko took a first-touch shot at the empty goal but Sergey Sukharev played the last man and cleared the danger.
The final whistle confirmed a popular wisdom: if you don’t score, your opponent does.
Lokomotiv (Moscow) - Arsenal (Tula) – 0:1 (0:0)
Goals: Zotov, 67 – 0:1.
Lokomotiv: Guilherme (C), Yanbaev, Corluka, Durica, Shishkin, Sheshukov (Tarasov, 45), Kasaev (Maicon, 75), Boussoufa, Fernandes, Samedov, Skuletic (Pavlyuchenko, 67).
Arsenal: Mucha, Kaleshin, Khagush, Sukharev, Osipov (C), Tesak, Kuznetsov (Lyakh, 63), Maslov, Ryzhkov (Smirnov, 73), Kascelan, Korytko (Zotov, 45).
Yellow cards: Maslov, 32. Tarasov, 83. Mucha, 84.
Referee: S. Lapochkin (St Petersburg)
Assistant referees: A. Kudryavtsev (St Petersburg), A. Veretyoshkin (St Petersburg)
14 March, 2015. Moscow. Lokomotiv Stadium. +7 Centigrade.
Attempts: 11-7. Shots on target: 5-4. Corners: 4-3.
The official website gave live text commentary from the match. Live updates were also available on Twitter.
