Three days after a convincing performance and a win (2-0) against Torino for the last 16 of the UEFA EUropa League
Zenit travelled to Moscow to face Torpedo for the 19th gameday of the SOGAZ Russian League.
A poor first half on a tough field made players efforts for proper football tougher, having only Hulk’s brilliant foul kick to show for. Shatov tried to break Torpedo’s defense but the Brazilian was the one to achieve it first with an excellent free kick over the wall that dropped below the posts, opening the score for the Blue-White-Sky blues at the 35th minute.
Yuri Lodygin and Zenit’s defense got busier in the second half as Boas’ players were trying to keep the lead and extend it through counter-attacks. Torpedo pressed more by the minute and was only a matter of time before the equalizer. Smarason was the one to level things up with an excellent in-box bicycle kick; 1-1 in Saturn stadium and a point shared for both teams.
CSKA managed to narrow the gap to 5 points, with Zenit visiting Moscow again in a week (facing third team Dynamo, while they travel midweek to Italy, looking to advance to the quarterfinals of the Europa League.
