The key facts

  • Russia beat Uzbekistan 3:2, coming back from 0:2
  • Vladimir Ponomarev compared the game of the two teams to a 'circus on ice'
  • On November 17 Russia will play Venezuela in Krasnodar

Comeback After Two Conceded Goals

The Russian national team won an away friendly against Uzbekistan 3:2, despite trailing by two goals during the game. In the 6th minute, Russian defender Viktor Melekhin deflected the ball into his own net from a corner kick, and in the 46th minute Bekhrujon Karimov extended the hosts' lead. The turnaround came late: in the 71st minute Nikolai Komlichenko pulled one back, in the 75th he equalized, and in the 79th minute Aleksei Miranchuk scored the winning goal after a low cross from Krugovoy.

'No Football At All'

Former USSR national team defender Vladimir Ponomarev gave the game a sharply negative assessment. 'Is this what you call a match? There used to be a circus on ice in Moscow. At the end of the show they would bring out bears on skates, and they played hockey. Today I saw the same kind of circus, only performed by two national teams,' he said, as quoted by RIA Novosti. Ponomarev also asked how one could 'struggle against such a team, play and lose three quarters of the game,' and added that in Russia, in his opinion, what is happening is a 'struggle with the ball' rather than football. Earlier, the head coach of the Russian team, Valery Karpin, also criticized his team's performance in this match.

Context of the November Camp

The match against Uzbekistan is part of Karpin's team's November camp: on November 17, Russia will play Venezuela in Krasnodar. In the previous camp, in September and October, the Russians beat Iran (2:0) and Namibia (6:0) and drew with Nigeria (3:3).