Guus Hiddink: The lads who came on instead of our leaders were magnificent

Anzhi Makhachkala manager Guus Hiddink praised the youngsters in his team after they earned a 2-0 victory against Kuban Krasnodar.

«How would you rate the youngster Muhammad Sharif’s performance?»

«I don’t like to single anyone out, but he is among the young talents who are knocking on the doors of our first team. He impressed in training and had a chance to show what he is worth in an official match. It was great that some of our absent leaders were comfortably replaced by the juniors – Carcela-Gonzalez, Shatov, Sharif and, of course, Odil Akhmedov, who had a quality game.

«What is Joao Carlos’s current condition?»

«He twisted his ankle so we decided not to risk him.»

«Are you able to combine coaching with other duties that include the development of the sport in Dagestan?»

«Yes, as planned, this has become an important aspect of my job. For example, just this morning we went to the construction site of the new Anzhi Arena. The club’s new academy will also be located there. We have some exciting ideas, including the development of scouting in the region, providing special training for the academy coaches and so on,» Hiddink told Anzhi’s official website.