All three teams – Lokomotiv, Krylia Sovetov, and Krasnodar – secured victories in their Saturday matches. Experts highlight the reigning champion`s strength, while sports commentators also point out Rostov`s faltering start to the season.
Rostov`s troubles began with coach Valery Karpin`s departure, followed by key players: Komlichenko moved to Lokomotiv, and Osipenko to Dynamo. Consequently, Rostov suffered their third consecutive defeat, losing 1:4 at home to Krylia Sovetov. Vadim Rakov, a former Lokomotiv player, scored a brace for Samara, increasing his RPL goal tally to four. Lokomotiv, meanwhile, clinched their third successive victory, defeating Pari NN 3:2 in Grozny, as the stadium in Nizhny Novgorod remains unprepared. In Saturday`s central clash in Kuban, Krasnodar and Dynamo – teams aspiring to challenge Zenit`s dominance – faced off in a match that ended in a deserved 1:0 victory for Krasnodar. Cordoba scored the winning goal with an incredible strike from outside the box in the closing minutes. Dynamo felt the absence of qualified defenders due to injuries, but visiting head coach Karpin refused to make excuses:
“There`s no point in blaming the absence of certain players. Krasnodar played very well, preventing us from executing what we intended. We`ll analyze the reasons for this, but broadly speaking, that`s what happened. We didn`t prepare for Krasnodar to have more possession. But if they took it – or if we gave it away! – that`s another matter.”
Krasnodar secured their sixth consecutive RPL victory over Dynamo. Sunday`s marquee match features Zenit against CSKA, where the Army Men are expected to debut 20-year-old midfielder Verde, on loan from Argentina`s Union de Santa Fe. Spartak will also play today at 13:30 in Samara against Akron Togliatti. The team is under pressure after a crushing 0:3 defeat to Baltika in the previous round. Questions have also arisen regarding the coach, specifically why Ugalde and Barco didn`t play a single minute together. Renowned Russian coach Dmitry Pyatibratov commented on this during a Match Premier broadcast:
“Honestly, this Spartak team is completely incomprehensible to me. When I was the coach of Fakel, I played against Spartak four times in one season. That was a `running` team with an excellent selection of players. It`s a shock to me how Ugalde isn`t playing for Spartak, especially with Barco also there? It`s the coach`s decision, I don`t dispute it; Stankovic certainly knows better than me who should play in his team. We are simply discussing now: how did Spartak go out and lose 0:3? Even with ten men, this team should be able to defend properly against any opponent. They should be creating attacking chances and not `falling apart.`”
Despite the criticism, Spartak is not giving up and is actively working in the transfer market. The club`s most expensive newcomer, 27-million-euro Gedson, has been assigned the No. 83 jersey, registered, and is ready to play against Akron. Additionally, the `Red-Whites` are eyeing two defenders from Europe`s top five leagues: Marseille`s captain, Argentinian Balerdi, and the shorter but tactically astute Saul Coco from Torino. A victory in Samara would allow Stankovic`s side to climb from tenth to fifth place in the table. Statistics also favor the Muscovites: last season, the `People`s Team` defeated Akron twice – 4:0 at home and 3:2 away. The current standings are:
- Lokomotiv – 9 points
- Krylia Sovetov – 7 points
- Krasnodar – 6 points
- Akron, Baltika, Rubin, Zenit, Dynamo, CSKA – 4 points each
- Spartak – 3 points
Matches between Zenit and CSKA in the Russian championship continue to be low-scoring affairs. The last time more than two goals were scored in their head-to-head encounters was three years ago. Since then, the teams have played ten matches at Gazprom Arena, scoring a combined total of only 11 goals.
Rupert Blackwood 
Clement Ashworth