CSKA boss Slutsky says side will attack Plzen
CSKA Moscow coach Leonid Slutsky insists his side will attack against Viktoria Plzen on Tuesday.
A draw is all the Russian outfit need to clinch the UEFA Europa League spot from Group D in the UEFA Champions League.
Viktoria Plzen boss Pavel Vrba expects Slutsky's men to defend their advantage, having won the previous group match between the teams 3-2.
But Slutsky said it was too slim a lead to protect, with a 1-0 win all the Czech side need at the Doosan Arena.
"Regardless of what is expected from us, we are not going to give our opponents the initiative and just defend a one-goal advantage – it is not that big," Slutsky said.
"We know very well that Plzen have a squad full of quality footballers and they are capable of dangerous attacking play.
"In the Czech league they usually have about 60 per cent of possession. We want to be proactive straight from the kick-off."
But Vrba believes CSKA Moscow will look to play on the counter-attack and said it was crucial his team scored first.
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"I expect that CSKA will come out with the home result in mind and focus on watchful defence in a tactical line-up like they used against Bayern and Manchester City, relying on fast counter-attacks," he said.
"We have to avoid conceding the opening goal and pay attention to the exceptionally fast-footed CSKA players. This will be key to our success."
The 3-2 loss in St Petersburg in October remains fresh in Vrba's mind and he wants his team to avoid making the same mistakes.
"(Ahmed) Musa, (Alan) Dzagoev and (Keisuke) Honda are CSKA's most dangerous players going forward," Vrba said.
"In the first game in Saint Petersburg we conceded after bad passes in our attacking half, which our opponents used to set up effective counters. We paid dearly for our mistakes."