Andre Villas-Boas was confirmed as Zenit head coach on Tuesday, arriving with a CV that combines Europa League success at Porto with turbulent spells at Chelsea and Tottenham. His return to coaching will offer no honeymoon though – the Portuguese will step into a cauldron at the Petrovsky and has some real work to do if he is to clear up the mess that Spalletti has left in his wake.
“It was not a big surprise,” former Zenit and CSKA Moscow defender Denis Mashkarin told Sportbox.ru after Spalletti’s departure.
“Zenit have some great players but lately their game has been all wrong. In addition, half the team has been in conflict – the situations with [Igor] Denisov and [Roman] Shirokov are direct consequences of an unhealthy situation. This abscess has been brewing – and finally it burst.”
Spalletti was guilty of a multitude of sins whilst at Zenit and, for all of his credentials as a coach, there was little surprise when it was announced that the club hierarchy had relieved him of his duties. There have been underlying tensions in the Zenit team for some time now, prompted by the club’s decision to bring in Hulk and Axel Witsel for a combined €80 million in September 2012.
The move was meant to be a signal of intent, the inspiration for Zenit to establish themselves among Europe’s elite. Instead, it spawned almost instant resentment within the squad, creating divides that are yet to heal within the Zenitchiki ranks. Zenit’s Russian players were infuriated by what they saw as an unjustified disparity in the club’s wage structure, with the foreign stars granted huge contracts, and demanded pay rises.
wish him better luck than he had at chelsea and Tottenham...
ReplyDeletehope he has learned....
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