Shalimov Reflects on His Debut Match as Head Coach of Fakel

The head coach of «Fakel,» Igor Shalimov, summarized the results of the 23rd round of the Russian Premier League, where his team played to a draw against «Akhmat» (0:0).

«When discussing the result rather than the performance, one can certainly say that it’s positive. We haven’t allowed ‘Akhmat’ to extend their lead to eight points and we’ve reduced the gap to ‘Nizhny’ by one point, a team we still have to face. So, in that sense, it’s somewhat satisfactory.

As for the game itself, the players largely succeeded in implementing our game plan. We utilized a lot of long passes while playing with two forwards. There was a lot of contesting for the ball, recoveries, throw-ins—Dziov was active on the right side, creating pressure. We tried to play in the midfield as much as possible. Given the short three days of preparation against a team like ‘Akhmat’, we did what we could with the information we retained.

However, we need to adapt our approach moving forward. We have to take into account the state of the field. We still have four more games here, and if the pitch is wet, it becomes quicker—we need to play football. Therefore, we will be adjusting our tactics accordingly,” Shalimov stated at the press conference.

«Fakel» currently sits in 15th place in the Russian championship standings, having accrued 15 points. «Akhmat» is positioned 13th, in the relegation playoff zone, with a total of 20 points.