The first match of the quarterfinals of the Russian Cup RPL Path, held in St. Petersburg, ended with the victory of our team with a score of 3:1.
The blue-and-whites' starting lineup offered several surprises: Leon Zaydenzal and Dmitry Skopintsev, who had been given the captain's armband, started at full-back, Alexander Kutitskiy and Viktor Okishor appeared in the center, and Nicolas Ngamaleu, who had last played at the end of September, was named on the left side of the attack.
Dynamo started the match actively, and in the fourth minute, Bitello fired a powerful shot from about 20 meters out. Evgeniy Latyshonok blocked it in front of him, and then managed to stop Ngamaleu's follow-up, although he was offside. A little later, Ivan Sergeev made a great pass to Bitello, and the home team's goalkeeper again saved a difficult shot from the Brazilian.
Gradually, the St. Petersburg team regained control and created several dangerous set pieces. In one instance, El-Mehdi Maouhoub saved a powerful shot from Yuri Gorshkov, costing a minor knockdown. Dynamo medics then rushed onto the field twice more to assist the Moroccan, who had landed awkwardly after aerial challenges. Ultimately, Ulvi Babaev came on to replace him in the 35th minute.
Meanwhile, Dmitry Skopintsev earned a dangerous free kick down the center of the goal, which sent Bitello into the wall. Immediately after the corner, Sergeev shot from a few meters away, and Nino blocked the ball. After the next corner, Skopintsev crossed right onto Ngamaleu's head, who fired over the crossbar. Finally, Bitello accelerated the attack and found the Cameroonian in the penalty area, who lobbed the ball beautifully past Latyshonok, but the ball landed in the net.
At halftime, a double substitution was made: Roberto Fernandez replaced Maksim Osipenko, who suffered a head cut late in the half, and Daniil Fomin replaced Kutitsky. The white-and-blues continued the pressure and quickly took the lead. Okishor tried a long-range shot, Latyshonok blocked it poorly, and Sergeev was first to the finish.
Seeking to equalize, Sergei Semak fielded his full lineup of attackers, and it was then time for Igor Leshchuk to step up. First, he blocked Nurali Alip's powerful shot from just inside the penalty area, and a little later, he neutralized Maksim Glushenkov's one-on-one. But Leshchuk, too, was powerless when Pedro fired a corner kick from three meters out, making it 1-1.
Yaroslav Gladyshev and Konstantin Tyukavin were brought onto the field for the final 20 minutes, and they ultimately made the difference. In the 84th minute, Gladyshev passed the ball to Tyukavin, who brilliantly evaded a defender and set up a one-on-one for Babaev, who chipped the ball over the onrushing Latyshonok.
Zenit rushed to save the match and managed to create one killer opportunity: Luis Enrique, after a pass from Pedro, seemed certain to hit Leshchuk, but our goalkeeper again excelled. And in stoppage time, Dynamo executed another perfect counterattack: Babaev beat Roman Vega, Gladyshev made a well-timed pass to the center, and Tyukavin sent the ball home with his second touch!
The return match will take place at VTB Arena on November 27, and in the next RPL match, Dynamo will host Akron Tolyatti on Saturday, November 8. Tickets for both matches are available on our website.
