FK Rostov vs PSV Eindhoven - Dmitri Kirichenko not speaking double Dutch just yet

Posted Wednesday, September 28, 2016 by PA

Assistant manager Dmitri Kirichenko has dismissed the notion that Rostov's Champions League play-off win over Ajax will give them an advantage against fellow Eredivisie side PSV Eindhoven.

The Russian side, who are making their debut in the competition, shocked Ajax 5-2 on aggregate to qualify for group stages but were given a rude awakening on matchday one as they suffered a 5-0 defeat at Bayern Munich.

With their Dutch opponents losing 1-0 against Atletico Madrid in Group D, both sides desperately need three points to keep their last-16 hopes alive but Kirichenko believes that his side will treat the game like any other.

"The (Ajax) game is in the past so we need to move on," he told the club's website.

"Every game is important. I can not understand why the media are constantly saying that we shall earn points against PSV.

"For example, I have seen the game between PSV and Atletico and I think that PSV were going to achieve a positive result.

"Yes, we had a difficult game with Bayern, but we did not cope with the excitement of the Champions League."

Kirichenko also stated that PSV pose a tougher test than their previous Dutch counterparts.

"We have studied the strong and weak points of PSV. In our opinion, PSV are more well-balanced and more of a threat than Ajax," he added.

"They had a number of young players, while last season PSV managed to qualify from a group that included CSKA Moscow and Manchester United,"

Left-back Fedor Kudryashov is available having served a one-game suspension as Rostov have no new injury worries.

PSV boss Phillip Cocu insists his team are seeking a win at the Olimp-2 Stadium but also believes that a draw would not be a bad result.

"We enter this match in order to get maximum results," Cocu told the club's official website.

"We always play to win, but you should also watch what happens at the end. A point in an away game is also valuable. Perhaps the might of Rostov was not very well known in Holland.

"But if you look at the club a few games in a row, you see that theirs is a quality team. They have quality, and are also defensively very strong."

Forwards Siem de Jong and Sam Lammers made their PSV debuts against Roda in the KNVB Cup and could feature on Wednesday but Jurgen Locadia will miss out with a groin injury.

The visitors are aiming to claim their first away win in the Champions League since 2007.