Alexander Zinchenko: "This time I played with a special feeling"
The Ukrainian midfielder of London Arsenal, Alexander Zinchenko, summed up the results of yesterday’s return match of his team with Dutch PSV (2:2) in the 1/8 finals of the Champions League, where he, let us remind you, scored a goal, and also shared his expectations from the confrontation with Madrid's "Real" in the 1/4 finals of the tournament.
"The most important thing is that we have moved on, and we are looking forward to the next matches. We should be proud of the result we achieved. Of course, we are seeking something more, but I think we are at a very interesting stage of the season, where every game feels like a final.
Personally, I had a special feeling today — playing against my former team (it should be noted that Zinchenko did not celebrate his goal against PSV, which can be seen in the video, — ed.). I really loved this club, where I was treated warmly. Even though I didn’t spend that much time at PSV, I have amazing memories from that season on loan (season 2016/17, 17 matches for PSV, 4 assists, — ed.). The reception there was so warm that even after I returned from loan to Manchester City, I visited Eindhoven a few times on weekends. So that’s how much I love this place. And I wish PSV all the best — they have fantastic people.
My appearance on the field as a midfielder? I wouldn’t say it’s a completely new position for me because I played there a lot before, especially for the Ukrainian national team. However, I told Martin Ødegaard and Declan Rice that now I understand how much they run. That’s the requirement at this level.
As for the upcoming confrontation with "Real" in the quarterfinals of the Champions League, in this tournament any team can punish you. At this stage, only world-class teams remain. So I’m just looking forward to this confrontation. "Real" is one of the largest clubs in the world, having won the Champions League 15 times, and they have many world-class players with incredible experience. So we need to show our best game, otherwise at this stage of the tournament we cannot afford any mistakes,” said Zinchenko as quoted by the official UEFA website and the official website of Arsenal.