“There was one way to relieve stress, different doses”: Head coach of the Zenit volleyball club – about traditions, preparation for the season and the situation with Anderson

One of the best setters in Soviet volleyball, Viktor Sidelnikov, who was invited to the Leningrad Avtomobilist by Vyacheslav Platonov himself, having tasted the coaching bread, did not think of returning to him. At Zenit he worked as a consultant, but in February he replaced Andrei Tolochko as head coach.

Under the leadership of Sidelnikov, Zenit won four victories in five matches at the end of the regular season, won the quarterfinal playoff series against Dynamo from the Leningrad region, but lost in the semifinals to Dynamo Moscow, and in the bronze medal series to Novosibirsk Lokomotiv.

In the Final Four of the Centenary Cup, Sidelnikov’s team again lost to Dynamo Moscow in the semifinals, and to Lokomotiv in the match for third place. Nevertheless, it will be Sidelnikov who will lead Zenit into battle in the new championship. After completing the team’s presentation, he answered questions from a journalist from MK in St. Petersburg.

— Were you able to fully implement your training plans in the off-season?

“Unfortunately, it was not possible to work in full force throughout the entire preparatory period. Some missed training due to injuries and illnesses; Zhenya Grebennikov left for the French national team. We held a stage of the Centenary Cup in St. Petersburg and played in the Final Four of this tournament. But anyway, the degree of Zenit’s preparation for the championship will be shown by the opening match.

— It’s clear that you couldn’t answer the student’s question about stress relief in detail. Do you use the traditional Russian recipe in such cases?

— Volleyball players of the current generation have already moved away from this practice. It used to be joked that there is only one way to relieve stress – the doses are different for everyone. We simply try to avoid stressful situations by improving the training process.

— American Matthew Anderson, who left Zenit with a valid contract, could play in two positions at once: diagonal and finishing player. What type of volleyball player are you currently looking for for the vacant foreign player position?

— We are not looking for a replacement for Anderson. The American was invited precisely because of his versatility. There were problems with the follow-up player, and there was simply no second diagonal player. At the same time, Viktor Poletaev periodically flew out due to injuries. Now there are fewer problems with diagonal ones. I would like to find a great finisher, but it’s not so easy to do. Not everyone is ready to go to Russia, and the best volleyball players in this role have long been snatched up by leading European clubs. We continue to work to strengthen our squad, but this is not an easy task.

— In addition to Poletaev, Yegor Klyuka, who was not even at the team’s presentation, has been suffering from injuries lately…

– I am sure that now Poletaev is almost one hundred percent ready. He calmly withstood two and three games at the Centenary Cup without substitutions. At the same time, we do not force the recovery process, understanding that the season is long. It is not advisable to bring volleyball players whose injuries require long-term treatment to peak form at the beginning of the season. We are looking forward to the return of Klyuka, who has been through several clinics both in Russia and abroad. Doctors say there is progress for the better.

— Usually in the summer, leading Russian volleyball players played almost non-stop for the national team in international tournaments. Are sanctions against domestic volleyball a plus for a club coach?

— I don’t consider this a big advantage. The lack of match practice and even full training from May to August does not have a beneficial effect on the game. I can judge from my own experience. I joined the Russian national team at the age of 18, and then it seemed like an incredible burden was placed on us in the summer. I spent 7–8 years without a vacation, but gradually adapted to this rhythm. Fatigue is present, but you don’t lose your shape. A few weeks of rest are enough to feel the taste of volleyball again. It’s better than a long vacation.