Former Shakhtar, Dnipro and Ukraine player Artem Fedetskyi defended Oleksandr Zinchenko, who is being criticised in England.
Artem Fedetsky- True fans understand what Zinchenko means to Arsenal. I follow Arsenal, we sometimes correspond with Sasha. I can say with confidence that he is a leader on the pitch and in the dressing room. Zina is a key player for the Gunners and a professional.
He abstracts himself from the hate and reacts normally to it, just doing his job. Zina always gives himself to the team to bring maximum benefit. And the fans will always find some kind of negative, no matter how you play.
- Zinchenko is mostly criticised for the moment with Liverpool's goal, when he failed to hold Salah, and for the missed goal against West Ham, when Sasha failed to deal with Gabriel in the penalty area.
- Zina does not play alone. Technical errors happen in football and absolutely everyone makes mistakes, both Messi and Mbappe. I think unsuccessful matches are a temporary phenomenon. According to some polls, Sania is among the four best left-backs in the world, which confirms his high level. He proved it while playing at Manchester City and now he is proving it at Arsenal. His dedication and playing qualities are beyond question.
- Zinchenko is criticised not only by fans, but also by well-known experts, such as Paul Merson and Harry Neville, who say that the Ukrainian is the only weak link in Arsenal's team.
- Let them talk less, and let Sanya read less. In my time, there were also plenty of experts who criticised me. Some people thought I was a completely incomprehensible footballer, but I never paid any attention to that, let them talk.
Neville is a figure in football, but first and foremost he has to be a professional. He is a former player and should know that football is a daily frantic work on yourself. If he expresses his opinion, he should be a professional in the role of an expert, not just throwing around big words.
Mistakes should be analysed diplomatically correctly and objectively, not labelled. Neville is engaged in yellow hate and cheap populism. Sasha shouldn't pay attention to him.
- Which expert has hated you the most during your playing career?
- Oh, I don't remember anymore. There were different experts. I was creative about it. I'm quite a self-critical and very demanding person. Even after my victories and my good game, I could be dissatisfied with certain moments. But let the experts talk to themselves, they need to remind themselves so that they are not forgotten.
- Did you get a lot of flak from Leonenko on Big Football?
- By the way, I have never heard anything negative from Leonenko about me. He told many players how to play, but not me.
- In Ukraine, Leonenko is the only one who hates Zinchenko.
- I crossed paths with Zinchenko in the national team when Sanya was young, I saw his attitude to football. He worked on himself every day. When Zina got to Manchester City, many people laughed and did not believe in his prospects, but Sanya proved with his efforts that he is a world-class player.
- Will Zinchenko break down psychologically after unsuccessful matches?
- Sanya is not the kind of player who will break down. Morally, he is very resilient and will never give up, under any circumstances. Zinchenko and Arsenal are fighting for the championship in the strongest league in the world. When you are at the top, people will always talk about you. As for the unsuccessful matches, Zinchenko needs to introspect and work on his mistakes.
- You said that you sometimes correspond with Zinchenko. What do you talk about?
- Sasha is helping a lot now, donating shirts to charity auctions. He also helps to raise money for cars and mavicas for the military. In this respect, he is a good man and never refuses, just like Trubin, Bushchan, Sudakov and Bondar. These guys will always help when you ask them.
Andriy Piskun
