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Last night CSKA played another European match. CFR Cluj and the “Army” failed to win and finished 0: 0, but the match was to the liking of fans of the 31-time Bulgarian champion.
Yes, CSKA again did not score a goal, but they won their second point in the tournament and again reminded themselves. Remember the CSKA brand, which can always surprise everyone. In this case, however, this is not so important. The Reds should be proud of their performance, because the Romanian champion was in the awkward position of being pushed onto their field for most of the match.
The first match in Sofia was won by Cluj with 2: 0. Then CSKA acted hastily, and the Romanians showed their enviable experience and consistently managed to score all three points. We saw the role reversal last night. The Army was the team that seemed much more routine and calm in the field. CSKA showed great aggressiveness from the beginning of the match. Great mixability between the lines in the different phases of the game and perfect compliance with the tactical instructions.
It is clear to everyone that CSKA has an excellent set of players at the moment. However, they were looking for the person who would relieve the tension of the players, who would arrange them correctly and give them the necessary confidence. It is still too early for cardinal evaluations, but it seems that the CSKA has found its commander in the person of Bruno Akrapovich. The Bosnian entered the Bulgarian Army Stadium with force and it seems that he has been in this stadium his whole life.
The person CSKA demonstrated last night cannot be compared to any other match during the campaign so far. The “Army” played with a lot of passes, fast ball shooting, great combinations and created a dozen positions in front of Cluj’s gate. At the same time, a very stable game in defense and without risks from anyone. The only most dangerous situation the Romanians had had came after an error by Jefferson, who did not return the ball well and his player escaped in front of Busato, but he did it brilliantly and with one hand managed to keep the net dry.
Almost all CSKA players tried their luck to score a goal. Starting with Antov, Matei, Jefferson, Yuga, Sankare, Yomov, Sow, Kerry. An opportunity was opened for everyone. The Reds’ desire to win can surprise even their opponent. The team that needed the points was them, and in the end they defended with teeth and claws. They started to slow down, to cheat, to try to surprise us with some static position, but they didn’t. CSKA had learned their lesson well from the first match and did not allow the Romanians to center the ball often in our penalty area.
Everyone on the protective axis did well. Matei and Zanev were flawless in every way. Antov had slight doubts when it came to passing the ball, but defensively he did well.
Thibaut Villon was pleasantly surprised by his game. The Frenchman did not stop wandering around the flank and constantly harassed the Cluj team.
Graham Carey started from the left, who showed enviable desire. He knows that there is serious competition for this position in the face of Maziku and he gave himself to the fullest.
Amos Yuga and Jefferson completely depersonalized the Romanians’ inner midfielders. They both handled the ball well and ruined all of Cluj’s attacks in his childhood.
The CSKA driver had to be Sankare. The Frenchman handles the ball well, but at times he seems too clumsy and static.
In the attack, the “Army” has two royal spikes in the face of Georgi Yomov and Ali Sow. Neither of them managed to sign, but as in previous matches, they again interacted very well several times and created headaches for the Romanians’ defense.
There are a lot of comments about the two best scoring situations that were revealed to Ali Sow, but he really did his best for both. In the first situation his shot was blocked with a dedicated split, and in the other situation, which was opened before him, the Gambian barely hit the ball with his head.
A separate issue is that it again had a major impact on the overall behavior of the team on the field. Sow is a very talented footballer and CSKA will probably not be able to keep him in their ranks for long.
In the end, maybe CSKA needed that match. A match without much pressure for the players, against a team strong enough in which they see and believe in themselves.
Only time will tell if that’s the case. However, there are reasons for smiles and optimism and this is best at this stage.
Now CSKA must quickly forget about this match, get out of the wings of Europe and come back to reality. We have already seen several times how after good matches in the tournament, the team experiences difficulties on the local stage. And here is the main objective and task of the team. It is clear to everyone and it will never be different. CSKA is a bit behind, but the difference can still be made up. Purely football, all the prerequisites are there, but in Bulgaria there are usually some collateral factors that “don’t know” why, in recent years … they always benefit a team from the northeastern part of our country.
For the more successful Bulgarian team, however, there is no other alternative. The “Army” has the potential and must do everything possible for a powerful attack on the title in the First League. The dethronement of the Razgrad team has never seemed so close. Ludogorets has shown a lot of doubt in his game recently, and progress at CSKA is obvious.
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