A comeback, a birthday goal and plenty of talent on show

The second goal at the end of the game frustrated the goalkeeper, who saved a penalty but was helpless for the rebound. “In my opinion the goalscorer was in the penalty area too early. It’s annoying, especially as I saved the penalty.” Minutes after the game, the keeper was keen to move on from the referee’s decision. “It’s only a friendly so it isn’t a big deal. Ultimately I think despite the defeat, today was a good day.”

Performances more important than the result

Domenico Tedesco had a similar view on the game to Fährmann. “Their second goal was hard to take. But the performances were more important than the result for me today. The lads played well and rose to the challenge.” The head coach is satisfied with several aspects of his team’s performance. “Bastian Oczipka made his return after six months out and did superbly well,” praised Tedesco. “He is like a new signing for us, as he was out for so long. He is comfortable on the ball, has good movement and takes dangerous set-pieces.”

Steven Skrzybski, who scored in the 35th minute, also put in a convincing performance. “He works so hard and knows exactly where the goal is,” explained Tedesco, who was delighted with the birthday boy’s performance, just as he was with those of the players from the youth academy. “The lads from the U23s did well and showed why their side has had such a good run of form. They played with confidence and weren’t overawed by the situation.”

Royal Blues enjoyed the atmosphere

Tedesco also found the atmosphere impressive in St. Petersburg. “It was real fun to play in a great stadium in front of over 40,000 fans in just a friendly,” said Tedesco on the game initiated by club sponsor GAZPROM. Bastian Oczipka also shared his bosses’ view on the day: “It wasn’t any normal friendly. There were a lot of fans there, who made a great atmosphere,” commented the left-back. “I felt good during the game and had no problems. It was important for me to get some minutes under my belt. Some things you just can’t recreate in training.”

Steven Skrzybski, who was praised by his teammates and the coach, was delighted with his goal: “It felt good to play 90 minutes again,” he said. “Franco made my goal well. I didn’t have much time to think about it, which isn’t the worst thing in the world for a striker”, the attacker added with a laugh on his face. He doesn’t want to say whether he thinks he will play on Saturday (24/11) against Nürnberg, but he does know one thing: “We have to play like we did today against Nürnberg – just with a better ending!”