Spartak fans in the new season will definitely expect the club to fight for trophies. However, without amplification to challenge the “Zenith” is impossible. The fate of the capital's team largely depends on the summer transfer campaign.
Strengthening defense
The spring segment revealed Spartak's significant problems in defense. The team pressed worse, played less actively without the ball, and the defensive line often remained without support. The aggressive style of defenders is effective only with similar actions of all football players.If Abascal manages to balance the game again, then a defensive buff is needed for trophies. First of all, this applies to the flanks, where, after the injury of Tomas Tavares, there was a shortage of performers. Now the coach has three players for two positions — Daniil Khlusevich, Denis Denisov and Leon Klassen.However, in winter, Tavares should return to service, albeit not in optimal shape. Signing a young talent now would create too much competition. Someone will not get enough time and will be forced to leave the club.
In addition, you need to consider the style of play «Spartacus». Abascal staged a combination attack with an active change of position. Therefore, the specialist used the right-footed Khlusevich and Tavares on the left flank. It is convenient for them to move to the center, freeing up a zone for partners. The new football player may be left-footed. The main thing is that he should not play linearly, but should be able to go into the half-flank.
There is no deficit in the center of defense. George Jikia, Nikita Chernov, Alexis Duarte and Pavel Maslov. Roman Litvinov can also play in this position. However, there is a problem with the quality of the performers. Duarte has difficulty adapting, Litvinov is more like a defensive midfielder, Chernov and Maslov are just weak players. And Jikia's style of play works only in moments of balance for the team.It's good that Abascal has a choice. However, quality is more important than quantity in this case. One strong defender would bring much more value to the team than two or three average performers. Perhaps “Spartacus” should look for a player who is not as aggressive in the fight as Jikia or Duarte. A quality insurer could better manage the defense line. needed in the attack line
Strengthening is also required in the front line. In the spring, when the team was in a fever and the leaders were dropping out, the effectiveness of the attack was seriously reduced. Fewer moments were created, the implementation became worse. However, given the selection of players in the attack group, the search for newcomers must be approached carefully.
Now Spartak has a full set of forwards — Alexander Sobolev, Shamar Nicholson and Keita Balde close the center forward position. Thanks to the simulated scheme with a diamond in the center of the field, the team does not need a large number of flank players. Quincy Promes with Anton Zinkovsky is enough to not experience a deficit on the edges of midfield. There is no good attacking midfielder.
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Earlier, Victor Moses was used in this position. However, he missed almost a year with an Achilles injury and may not be able to return to his previous level. For most of the season, Mikhail Ignatov, who was not particularly impressive, played under the attackers. The pupil of the club is technical, mobile and quite talented, but has not yet mastered the level of the RPL. Ignatov often did not keep up with the thoughts of his partners and was a “role player”, scoring only two goals in the championship.
Spartak needs to strengthen the attacking midfielder for further progress. At the same time, it is desirable to find a sufficiently versatile player who could play both a little closer to his goal and on the flank. By signing such a player, the Red-Whites will be able to take a step forward. And there — the struggle for the Cup of Russia and the RPL gold.
The opinion of the author may not coincide with the position of the editors