Artiga delivers results — two wins in two matches: this time the Macedonians are defeated

Three central defenders

For his second match with Rubin, Artiga again chose a formation with three central defenders. Although it initially seemed that the team would play against Struga with a duo of defenders Igor Vuyachich and Egor Teslenko. However, it became clear in the first minutes of the match that Ilya Rozhkov was the third central defender.

On the flanks were Anderson Arroyo and Dardan Shabanhadzhay, who had to cover the entire wing. For the latter, it was a new experience — previously in Kazan he was used purely in attack. However, the match developed in such a way that he still ended up in attack more often than in defence.

Artiga put Oleg Ivanov and Daler Kuzyaev in the centre of the field. And then in attack there was something unclear. The only striker in the starting lineup was Daniil Motorin, with Nikita Vasiliev and Veldin Khodja constantly near him. As a result, these two created much more scoring opportunities than the striker himself.

In goal, compared to the previous match against the Serbian IMT, there was a change. So, Evgeny Staver was replaced by Artur Nigmatullin. An interesting change, given that Rubin may soon sign a new goalkeeper. Alexey Kenyaykin has been training with the team all this time and should soon officially become a player of the Kazan club.

Scoreless

The first half of Rubin's performance can be divided into two parts. In the first 15 minutes, the Kazan team were the most active. Artiga's players put жёсткий pressure on the opponent, who sometimes could not even leave their half of the field. Most of the interceptions and tackles turned into dangerous approaches to the Macedonians' penalty area, but they could not make the most of them.

Shabanhadzhay completed the first ten minutes with a long-range shot, moving closer to the centre of the goal — wide. Vasiliev's shot was much more accurate. The Kazan воспитанник touched the ball in one touch, which hit the crossbar and went out of play. After that, it seems that the freshness left the Rubin players.

The players came to their senses towards the end of the half. In the 35th minute, Ivanov shot from the edge of the penalty area in the second phase, but it was over the bar. Immediately after, Teslenko almost scored an own goal — Nigmatullin jumped and got the ball from the corner.

To be fair, let's say that Struga had no dangerous moments at all. The Macedonians looked dull and did not create any difficulties for the Kazan goalkeeper and defenders. As a result, the teams went into the break with a score of 0-0.

Kuznetsov and Mukba «made» the result

Rubin came out with a completely different lineup for the second half. Evgeny Staver appeared in goal, with Nikita Lobov, Alexey Gritsaenko and Konstantin Nizhegorodov in defence, with Daniil Kuznetsov and Alexander Lomovitsky supposed to assist them on the flanks. In the centre of the field were Alexander Zotov, Marat Apshatsev and Bogdan Yochich, and in attack were Enri Mukba and Nikola Chumich.

The most active player in the Kazan team, as in the game against IMT, was Kuznetsov. The wing midfielder stood out from the other players, constantly looking for an opportunity to receive a pass. Twice Chumich finished off his crosses, but in both cases he could not use them correctly. On the third attempt, the opponent's defender headed Kuznetsov's pass into his own net — 1-0.

A few minutes later, Enri Mukba scored. At that moment, the broadcast was temporarily interrupted, and the goal was only seen in the replay. A воспитанник of the Kazan academy picked up the ball after his teammates' pressing, adjusted it for a shot and sent it into the far corner — 2-0. That was the end of the scoring actions. Two goals were enough for the Kazan team to win, and the Macedonians could not break through the opponent's defence.

Artiga himself after the game emphasised that at this stage of preparation it does not matter much which formation his team plays.

«The formation is not so important in this case. We played with three central defenders. On the flanks in the first half there was one winger and one full-back, in the second half there were two wingers. What's more important is that we are giving our players practice so that they gradually get into shape and are ready to play 90 minutes at a high pace. We need to be competitive in the first official match,» said Artiga.

Results of the first training camp in Turkey

The first winter training camp for Rubin has now ended. The players will have a few days of rest, and then on January 30 they will gather in Belek to continue preparing for the resumption of the season.

For now, we can summarise some of the results of Artiga's coaching staff. Of course, we need to take into account the fact that the team is currently under a lot of pressure. However, the Kazan team's opponents were not very strong clubs.

Rubin's game has already changed significantly. Artiga insists on two things — ball control and fighting after losing possession. There were no problems with ball possession in the matches against IMT and Struga. However, so far it is just control for the sake of control. Rubin controls the ball well, stretches the defence on the flanks, but struggles with the final pass. There is a lack of sharpness in attack.

As a result, Daniil Motorin stood out from the game. A lot was expected from the striker, who was brought back from Kamaz in the winter, including goals and productive actions. Motorin did not even have half-chances in two games.

However, this is not just one player's problem. In two games, the team scored five goals — two from long range, one from an own goal, one from a penalty and the fifth from a goalkeeper's mistake on Vasiliev's shot. The Spanish coaching staff's combinations are not working yet.

Also, Rubin did without a number of leaders. Mirlind Daku, Ugochukwu Iwu, Jacques Sive, Ruslan Bezrukov, Alexander Yukich and Denil Maldonado are still recovering from injuries. Artiga could not count on them at the first training camp, which means he had to make do with a limited number of players and achieved a 100% result.

Rubin — Struga 2-0 (0-0, 2-0)
Goals:
1-0 — 69, Diaco (own goal);
2-0 — 73, Mukba.

Rubin's next match will be on February 4 against Zhenis from Kazakhstan at 17:00 Moscow time. The originally scheduled match on January 31 against Borec was cancelled.