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POGREBNYAK WINS ZVEZDA AWARD IN JANUARY
Pavel Pogrebnyak has won Sport Express' Zvezda
award in January leaving behind the three-time winner Andrey Arshavin
and Yuriy Zhirkov on the second and third places respectively.
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Pavel Pogrebnyak Photo SPORT EXPRESS
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"To be honest I don't watch any kind of contests",
said Russian striker. "But of course it's pleasant when experts mention
your achievements. Stuttgart showed interesting football under the new
head coach, we won almost all games and I looked rather well too".
"My club grabbed 16 points in six Bundesliga games under Christian
Gross, while we earned only 12 points in 15 matches under Markus Babbel.
We would have won all six matches if not Lehmann madness in Mainz when
he stood on the foot of Mainz striker Aristide Bance to concede a penalty".
"As for quick improvement of our results, it is consequence of work
with experienced specialist. Fantastic energy comes from Gross so that
we began struggling for every part of the pitch unlike the start of the
season. Now we want to win each game and it's mostly our head coach's
merit".
"We began doing exercises in the gym and working with the ball at
trainings more. Relations in the team became much better too, we are a
real team now while all players were separated at the beginning of the
season".
"Coach's trust is important for strikers. Under Babbel I also was
a starter, but I didn't like that sometimes I had to sit on the subs'
bench, so I am not satisfied principle of rotation. Now I am sure of myself
and Marica and I try to justify the coach's trust".
"Departure of Stuttgart former captain Thomas Hitzlsperger to Roma
was a surprise for us. He was featured in the lineup not all the time
and if not the World Championship he would have stayed. However in order
to go to the South Africa he is to have constant playing practice".
"Meanwhile coaches trust Ciprian Marica more and we look very well
in attack. He moved to Stuttgart from Shakhtar and it's great that he
speaks Russian too besides Alexandr Hleb and me".
"I was lucky to play in the team with Russian-speaking teammates,
I cannot imagine how I would have talked to other players at the beginning
of my career in Stuttgart".
"To my mind Alexandr Hleb will gain his peak form by our matches
against Barcelona in the Champions League. Of course he is waiting for
them with special feelings like any other player in the same situation".
"But we didn't begin preparing for these games. We have climbed from
the bottom of the standings and every match is decisive for us, because
we need to advance to Eurocup zone".
Sport
Express Daily, 10 February 2010
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