The coaching staff of Kaliningrad’s football club Baltika is frustrated with the results of the current Russian Premier League season, head coach Andrey Talalaev told reporters.
On Sunday, Baltika suffered a 0-1 defeat against Moscow’s Lokomotiv in the 29th round of the RPL. The Kaliningrad side has collected 46 points and sits fifth in the standings, having lost any chance of securing medals.
“We are disappointed with the outcome of the championship. If Petrov had converted the penalty and we had drawn, we would have been satisfied. It’s still unclear what the team will look like next year. We are making substitutions and restructuring our play. We’ll keep fighting, and I hope that with the return of more skilled players, things will change. If Ilya Petrov can’t score, what can I demand from younger players?” Talalaev said.
“We tried to play with two strikers. We spent the whole week preparing our three central midfielders to pick up the ball. It was difficult to outplay such a Lokomotiv side. We attempted to overpower them through set-piece advantages. I think Lokomotiv won’t let go of the bronze now. A team fighting for medals should play exactly like that,” the Baltika coach noted.
In the 12th minute, Baltika was reduced to ten men after defender Kevin Andrade was sent off. “Regarding the red card — when people talk about having one foot out the door, I think this is what they mean. He’s already not with us, in my opinion, and that’s not how you should end your career at a club. He played a brilliant match against Krasnodar when he battled with John Cordoba. He needed to put in a couple more performances like that,” Talalaev added.
In the final round of the championship, the Kaliningrad team will host Moscow’s Dynamo.
