O'Neill hails Rubin class
Shamrock Rovers manager Michael O’Neill saluted the best team he has come across in European competition after seeing Rubin Kazan ease their way to Europa League victory in Tallaght.
Kurban Berdyev’s men were in front within three minutes and never looked like relinquishing their grip on the points as they got their Group A campaign off to the perfect start.
However, O’Neill was quick to point out the financial mismatch within the tie as his club attempts to continue to punch above their weight on the European stage.
Asked if the Russians were the best side he had come across in his time as a manager, he said: “Yes, I think they are to be honest.
“If you look at the squad, it is littered with international players and has been basically assembled from all four corners of the globe at no little expense.
“They are a club which is very, very much on the up, a club that envisages itself being a regular Champions League club and continuing to strive to be that.
“To be fair, Juventus were in a bit of a transitional period when we played them; Copenhagen are an excellent side, as are Belgrade, but neither would have the financial backing that Kazan would have.
“You only have to look at the figure quoted today that they paid for Obafemi Martins – you could run our club for 10 years off that.
“That gives you an indication of the difference in the financial landscape between the two clubs.”
Former Newcastle frontman Martins, who joined Rubin for a reported 17million euros from Wolfsburg in July last year, opened the scoring with less than three minutes played when he latched on to Gokdeniz Karadeniz’s cross and fired home.
Turkey international Karadeniz, who only arrived in Ireland on the morning of the game because of visa problems, was a threat throughout and after Christian Noboa had put the visitors further head five minutes after the break, wrapped up the scoring himself with a beautiful curling shot on the hour.
In the meantime, Rovers keeper Ryan Thompson had saved a first-half Nelson Valdez penalty, although it later emerged that the Paraguayan should not have taken the spot-kick in the first place.
Berdyev said: “The player who wins the penalty [Martins] is supposed to take it, but Valdez thought he would take it.
“He won’t be punished, but in future, the player who wins the penalty will take it.”
Rovers were also unable to take advantage of a penalty when Stephen O’Donnell’s effort was saved by keeper Sergei Ryzhikov, who had earlier kept out Ronan Finn’s header from point-blank range.
O’Neill said: “We have to give credit to the opposition, to be fair. At times, they showed a class right through the team, possession of the ball.
“Obviously, to lose a goal so early in the game was difficult for us.
“That was the disappointing aspect of it, that we never really got a chance to settle into the game and we were almost playing as if we were a goal down from the start.”
