CSKA legend Ponomarev named the sale of leading players as the reason for Lokomotiv's problems

Ponomarev: the coach is not to blame

Former defender of Moscow CSKA and the USSR national team Vladimir Ponomarev, in an interview with Gazeta.Ru, commented on the situation surrounding Lokomotiv, which has dropped to second-to-last place in the Russian championship standings. In his view, the team's former head coach Mikhail Galaktionov bears no responsibility for the club's results. “I wouldn't even make any claims against Galaktionov. He is not to blame for what happened to the club — he was forced to sell the leading players. After his dismissal, Lokomotiv will slide, slide even further down the table. There is nothing you can do here — there is no one to field, and the coach himself is at a loss because of it,” Ponomarev said.

Defeat to Rubin and the resignation

The reason for the discussion was the match of the 14th round of the Russian Premier League, in which Lokomotiv on November 6 at home lost to Kazan's Rubin with a score of 0:1. The only goal was scored by Kazan player Yegor Teslenko in the 71st minute. After this defeat, Galaktionov left the post of head coach. In the RPL standings, Lokomotiv occupies 15th place with 11 points. It was previously reported when exactly Galaktionov would leave the club.

What lies behind the assessment

Ponomarev essentially links two facts: the coach's dismissal and the loss of leading players, which, according to him, was imposed on the club. At the same time, his statement that the team “will slide even further down the table” is a prediction by the former footballer, not a confirmed fact: after the 14th round, Lokomotiv with 11 points occupies 15th place, and how its position will change without Galaktionov will be shown by the following rounds. The publication does not specify to whom exactly the club sold the players and on what terms.