Sandro Schwarz: I am proud of the team for finding way out stalemate and reaching the Cup final

# Sandro Schwarz
Sandro Schwarz

Sandro Schwarz

Dynamo Head Coach answered journalists' questions after the Cup win over Alania (3:0).

— We played very well in the first half: our team created a lot of goalscoring chances. Unfortunately, we managed to score only one goal. After the break we doubled the lead quickly, but we have to pay tribute to the rival for their aggressive and brave football. They put pressure constantly. We could freeze their enthusiasm by scoring the third goal and securing the match.

— The team didn't play quite well in the last games. What did you pay special attention to when preparing for the semifinal?

— We were quite critical taking these three defeats into consideration, but they were all different. The team looked pretty good against CSKA. In the match against Ural, we played well for the first 30 minutes. Over the past few days, I have had personal talks to each of the guys. We tried to find the reason for our poor results together. I am proud of the team’s character and their determination to get to the Russian Cup final. I am very happy.

— What did the players see as the reasons for those defeats?

— I had 26 personal talks. It was important to get feedback from the players and analyze their vision of this situation. I was paying attention to our common job that was successful. We tried to find something positive in the work that we have done during this time. We talked about team play and individual actions.

Now we are coming to the crucial part of the season, and we know how successful we can be. It was important to free the players’ thoughts. We want to finish the season successfully.

— It seemed that Dynamo players were surprised by the opponent, which allowed to create so many chances and left many free zones. Would you like to see more attacking teams like Alania in the RPL?

— Immediately after the game, I came to the head coach of Alania and expressed my compliments to him. I was impressed by how bravely his team played. Even after the second conceded goal, they went forward, clung to every ball and played aggressively. I am not surprised why Alania have reached the semifinals. They deserved it due to their play quality and strict organization.

— Who would be more interesting to play against in the final Yenisey or Spartak?

— I would not like to guess. Tomorrow we will watch their encounter and analyze it. We are not looking so far ahead and we are fully focused on the upcoming match against Lokomotiv. We need to remain second in the table and win silver medals.

— The Cup final will be held at Luzhniki. Have you ever been at this stadium?

— Yes, I went to the Luzhniki Stadium for the match between Russian and Croatian national teams. I also attended the beach soccer World Cup that was held near this stadium.