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Shatov rues Zenit's missed opportunity

FC Zenit midfielder Oleg Shatov was left frustrated after his side, down to ten minutes for the last 45 minutes, were unable to make their early dominance count against FK Austria Wien.

Shatov rues Zenit's missed opportunity
Shatov rues Zenit's missed opportunity ©UEFA.com

FC Zenit midfielder Oleg Shatov lamented his side's inability to grab an early goal as the Russian Premier League leaders and FK Austria Wien registered their first points in this season's UEFA Champions League. The game ended 0-0 draw at the Stadion Petrovski as the visitors failed to capitalise on Axel Witsel's dismissal on the stroke of half time. Despite that, Violets goalkeeper Heinz Lindner says he was very proud of his side's defensive display.

Oleg Shatov, Zenit midfielder
I think we played well in the first half and created chances to score, but the sending off changed things. In the second half our opponents looked to concentrate on their defence, as that was their plan all along – to come here for a point, which they managed to get. It was difficult for us to play with ten men as we have played a lot of games recently. I think tiredness started to kick in as the match wore on.

We knew if we managed to score an early goal then our opponents would have to attack more. This would have allowed us to play on the counterattack, which is one of our strengths. However, they defended very well and didn't allow us to create a lot of opportunities. We will look back at the game and our head coach will tell us where we went wrong.

Yuri Lodygin, Zenit goalkeeper
We are unhappy that we were unable to score. The most important thing is to score a goal as this brings you victory and with it the points. Obviously, everyone is a bit down in the dressing room, but we will be keeping our heads up and looking forward to our next games domestically and in the UEFA Champions League. We will be playing every game like a cup final and [try to] win every match, so we get enough points to get through to the next round. 

Manuel Ortlechner, Austria Wien defender
We have had our problems in the league and the cup and nobody thought we would earn a point here. I am very proud of the boys and I hope we can keep this momentum and I am looking forward to the next games. It makes me proud to be named man of the match and I think I have been in good shape over the last couple of weeks, so I am quite happy.

Our defence played really well and I think our goalkeeper, Heinz Lindner, played a very good game. We would like to pick up some more points, which is our next goal. There are some difficult games ahead and we are looking forward to the next one at home against Atlético Madrid. I think they are the favourites in the group so it is going to be a tough game.

Heinz Lindner, Austria Wien goalkeeper
We are really happy to bring one point back to Vienna and I think we played really well. We defended very well and we didn't allow Zenit's attackers a lot of space, which meant it was difficult for them to play. The point is very good for us. We have not come to play in the UEFA Champions League to go to cities on holiday. Now everyone knows that teams from Austria can play good football.

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