Georgy Zhbanov: “We’re saving our bullets for Moscow”
— Georgy, congratulations on the victory over Nizhny Novgorod. What was the key to today's win?
— The key to victory was the third quarter. We came out with a different attitude, started fighting for rebounds, grabbed a couple of important offensive rebounds, scored from them, felt confident, and finished the game strong.
— Xavi said after the game that he was only satisfied with the defense in the third quarter. What can be improved before the upcoming game against CSKA?
— Keep me on the court more, and then the defense will be better, and overall, we'll win more.
— Questions were raised during the press conference, including why your shot wasn't falling today. Does that mean it will be much better in the next game?
— Yes, we’re saving our bullets for Moscow. Why waste them now? Besides, the weather in St. Petersburg wasn’t suitable today. But don’t worry, we’ll score plenty in Moscow.
— How do you feel heading to Moscow? It’s probably a special match-up for you, as it is for all Zenit players. And for Andrey Vorontsevich, it's an extraordinary event.
— Yes, of course, it’s going to be a big game. We’re all looking forward to it. We play for games like this, with lots of fans and a great intense atmosphere.
— What did you notice most in CSKA’s game? What is their main strength?
— Their main strength is our brother, Alex Avramovic. Our Serbian brother has fit well into CSKA’s system. He manages the offense. I’m not sure, we’ll see what the coach says about how to play against him.
— Lastly, how will you spend the days leading up to the game against CSKA? Now it's probably time to recover mentally and physically.
— Yes, yes, we’ll recover. We’re starting practicing tomorrow, no days off. We don’t need days off. We keep working, and we’ll head to Moscow to win.
