The return leg of the quarterfinal of the Russian Cup, held at VTB Arena, ended with the victory of Zenit St. Petersburg with a score of 1:0.
Rolan Gusev again sprang surprises in his starting lineup, which featured six nominal defenders. Nicolás Marichal, Maxim Osipenko, and Roberto Fernández formed the central trio, Juan Cáceres and Dmitry Skopintsev lined up on the wings, and Rubens moved into the holding midfield to support Daniil Fomin. Konstantin Tyukavin and Ivan Sergeev once again lined up together in attack.
Dynamo started very actively, and in their first attack, Fomin fired from the penalty area, but the ball was easily saved by Yevgeny Latyshonok. Ten minutes later, the visitors regained the initiative and had a more dangerous opportunity – Nuraly Alip joined the attack and converted a cross from the right flank, heading the ball inches wide of the post.
The St. Petersburg team put serious pressure on the Blue-Whites' defense and, in the 29th minute, were awarded a penalty. Juan Cáceres struck Andrei Mostovoi in the penalty area, and Mostovoi himself converted the penalty. Soon after, Gerson fired a powerful shot from outside the box, which Andrei Lunev blocked in front of him. Fortunately, Maxim Glushenkov missed the rebound and hit the near corner.
Late in the half, the Muscovites managed to push the game away from their penalty area, but Zenit still created another crucial opportunity – Glushenkov fired from a few meters out, and Lunev made a crucial save.
At halftime, Leon Zaydenzal replaced Juan Cáceres at right back. Dynamo again got off to a good start. Bitello delivered a free kick, Marichal collected the ball at the far post, after which Luis Enrique cut it under the crossbar, where Latyshonok flicked it home. Sergeyev then carried the ball from the center of the field to the penalty area and rolled it to Bitello, but he missed his shot from a good position.
The visitors responded equally sharply, twice shooting from almost the goal line – first, Strahinja Erakovic missed the target, and a little later, Alexander Sobolev headed the ball right at Lunev.
Dynamo's attack was given a new impetus by Viktor Okishor's arrival, replacing Skopintsev, after which Rubens moved to the left side of defense. Tyukavin twice attempted to make the right play in the penalty area, but both attempts were unsuccessful. Soon after, Kostya gave way to Ulvi Babaev, who could have scored with his first touch, finishing off a Zaydenzal cross, but the ball sailed over the crossbar.
The blue-and-whites defended confidently for the remaining time and secured their goal, winning 3-2 on aggregate. Dynamo will face Spartak twice in the semifinals in March, and their next RPL match is on Sunday, away against Akhmat.
