Zenit St Petersburg are confident of success in Wednesday’s UEFA Cup final against Rangers, despite the fact that they will be without leading scorer Pavel Pogrebnyak.
The 24-year-old Russian international will miss the final after being booked in the return semi-final with the German champions.
However, Zenit manager Dick Advocaat insisted that his side could cope with the loss of Pogrebnyak.
“Pavel (Pogrebnyak) has performed well in European cups this season,” Advocaat said. “I’m very pleased with his form. His absence is a serious loss but definitely not a tragedy for us.”
“During this season we have repeatedly been forced to play without our top players, but nevertheless have managed to reach the final. I believe we can find a worthy substitution for Pogrebnyak.”
Zenit, who were given a rest from the domestic league to prepare for the UEFA Cup final, recorded a 2-2 draw in a friendly with the Dutch league side AZ Alkmaar at the weekend.
