Arsen Zakharyan entered the Santiago Bernabeu field for the first time in his career on Sunday. The young Russian tried to save the team from defeat at the end of the match with Real Madrid, but did not succeed. But he showed that he still has everything ahead.
In the first matches after moving to Spain, Arsen appeared on the field in any situation. However, the meeting with Real stood apart. In a game against such a serious opponent, Zakharyan could only come out to save Real Sociedad.
A turbulent start dramatically reduced his chances. Already in the fifth minute, Takefusa Kubo found his opponent Ander Barrenechea in the penalty area with a soft throw, and the young Basque beat the goalkeeper in two attempts. Almost immediately, Kubo doubled the visitors' advantage with a powerful long-range strike, but the referees saw Mikel Oyarzabal offside and the goal was canceled.
This start woke up the Madrid team, who rushed to win back. Unfortunately, the effort was only enough for Joselu to hit the crossbar. The Basque club gradually calmed down the game and moved it away from their goal. The guests carried out a couple of very dangerous attacks, organized by the same Kubo. The Japanese outplayed Fran Garcia on the flank and created chances for his partners, only the reliability of the Real goalkeeper did not allow Sociedad to increase their lead.
It seemed that the Basques had everything under control, but the slightest chance is enough for Real. Already in the first minute of the second half, the hosts got even. The sweeping attack ended with a powerful shot from Federico Valverde from the penalty area into the near corner.
However, the guests immediately took control of the ball and began to lay siege to the Madrid goal. It was difficult to understand who the favorite was — Sociedad almost did not let Real out of their half of the field. Los Blancos were clearly confused and could not turn the meeting around. But “chance” intervened again.
At the end of the hour, Carlo Ancelotti was preparing to make a double substitution when Real unexpectedly scored. The guests slowed down their activity somewhat and allowed a couple of attacks to be carried out, in one of which Garcia found Joselu with a cross in front of the goal. An accurate header put Zakharyan's team in the position of catching up.
This development of events gave the Russian a chance to prove himself. With 10 minutes left, Imanol Alguacil decided that it was time to throw all attacking reserves into battle. Zakharyan took the position of an attacking midfielder.
Spanish Football Championship
September 17, 2023 • start at 22:00
Completed
Real MadridSpain
2 : 1
Re al SociedadSpain
46' • Federico Valverde (Francisco Garcia)
61' • Joselu (Francisco Garcia)
05' • Ander Barrenechea< br>
In the first minutes, Arsene looked somewhat lost — he did not open well, could not find a free zone, constantly duplicated the position of one of his partners and therefore almost did not receive the ball. When this happened, he slept through Toni Kroos's jerk. The German jumped out from behind Zakharyan to intercept and Real carried out a most dangerous counterattack, which almost ended with another goal from Valverde.
In the last minutes, the Russian was able to rehabilitate himself. Arsen began to find a free zone on the right half-flank and received the ball near the corner of the penalty area, from where he could aggravate. First, Zakharyan saw Momo Sho connect and placed the ball into his partner’s foot with an accurate pass — the Frenchman’s shot was powerful, but inaccurate. A couple of minutes later, from the same position, he brought Mikel Merino into the area in front of the penalty area, but the Spaniard hesitated and was unable to shoot.
The guests looked better, they simply did not capitalize on the chances and allowed the opponent to raise his head a couple of times. This was enough for Madrid to win. Zakharyan could not save the team, but he was definitely not yet mature for such feats. But he showed that even against Real Madrid he can be useful in attack. The coach is counting on him, so Arsen will progress. The day is near when the Russian will decide the fate of the matches at the Santiago Bernabeu.
The author’s opinion may not coincide with the position of the editors