CSKA 1-0 Lokomotiv: CSKA secure second consecutive RPL title

CSKA managed to clinch the title in an exhilarating decider with a 1-0 win over Lokomotiv at home.

CSKA lined up exactly as expected, however Lokomotiv played a somewhat bizarre set of players. Vedran Corluka was able to return from suspension in the centre of defence, however Renat Yanbaev continued to start over the much more consistent and impressive Roman Shishkin at right back. Also, Roman Pavlyuchenko, Aleksei Miranchuk and Sergei Tkachev started over Dame N'Doye, Mbark Boussoufa and Maicon respectively, the latter two choices seeming questionable at best.

CSKA needed a win to guarantee the title win, however neither side was able to get the upper hand early as Zenit went ahead after just 15 minutes through Axel Witsel to bump the St. Petersburg side into first place. It was Alan Dzagoev that had the best chance of the half for either team when he headed the ball just wide from a free kick, but it failed to trouble Guilherme. Another 10 minutes passed before anything changed in the title race, as Zenit extended their lead through a Salomon Rondon header. The lack of chances ensured that both Moscow sides went into the interval trailing Zenit in the title race, prompting Leonid Kuchuk to substitute Roman Shishkin on for Sergei Tkachev.

The title scene changed immediately after half time as CSKA were able to take the lead straight away. An abysmal back pass from Vedran Corluka was intercepted by Zoran Tosic, who finished low from outside the box to put CSKA into first place. The hosts then continued to build on this by attacking all out, and Dzagoev almost set up Pontus Wernbloom, but the Swede blazed the ball over the bar. Lokomotiv tried to change the game by introducing N'Doye and Boussoufa, but this failed to have a major impact as CSKA continued to push forward, threatening Guilherme's goal often. This was only to last a short while however, as the introduction of Ahmed Musa in place of Dzagoev compromised CSKA defensively, and Loko experienced a slight resurgence. Igor Akinfeev was forced to face several free kicks from dangerous positions, but was equal to all of the efforts. CSKA's defence got increasingly nervy as time went on, and a Vitali Denisov throw in with a minute of regular time left to play caused serious problems for the hosts, but it was eventually cleared and proved to be the final chance of the match. CSKA closed it out well and managed to take the title, despite Zenit's 4-1 win over Kuban in Krasnodar.

Player of the Match: Georgi Schennikov
Schennikov bossed CSKA's left flank all game and shut down the in-form Aleksandr Samedov. An all around excellent performance from the 23-year-old.

Honourable Mentions:
Igor Akinfeev - Kept CSKA in the lead in the dying minutes of the match.
Zoran Tosic - Was largely invisible but did manage to get the title-clinching goal, so of course he gets a mention.

Notes:
- Lokomotiv came into this with almost no chance of securing the title, but they did themselves no favours and will now have to settle for third place. Disappointing way for them to end the season.
- I like Vedran Corluka, but good god that pass was awful. I will not be surprised at all if he receives death threats from Zenit fans in the coming weeks and months.
- These two teams have the best fullback pairings in the league, and CSKA certainly came out on top in that respect, although that can probably be attributed to Kuchuk's inexplicable dropping of Shishkin from the first XI.

Lokomotiv 1-1 Zenit: Exhilarating title clash ends in fair draw

A ridiculously entertaining match between the two main contenders for the RPL title has ended in a draw, maintaining Zenit's advantage in the title chase with only two matches left to play.

Lokomotiv lined up a little strangely, as Lassana Diarra and Maicon continued to miss out due to injuries, while Vedran Corluka was dropped thanks to his suspension. However, the more controversial lineup decision was the inclusion of Renat Yanbaev over regular left back Vitali Denisov. On a more positive note, Mbark Boussoufa and Dame N'Doye were able to return to the lineup, however in the latter case, this required dropping the in-form Roman Pavlyuchenko from the starting XI. Zenit, on the other hand, lined up mostly as expected.

Neither side was particularly dominant in the early stages, although Lokomotiv were perhaps the better of the sides, having two good chances early on. After just eight minutes, Aleksandr Samedov sent him a cross that N'doye headed at goal, but Yuri Lodygin was able to make the save easily. It was twelve minutes before either side really had another good chance, and it was Lokomotiv again when a Samedov free kick rattled the crossbar, but ultimately came to nothing when the rebound was put out by Sergei Tkachev. However, it proved to be the next major chance that broke the deadlock fifteen minutes later. Jan Durica's overhead clearance failed dramatically, falling straight to Salomon Rondon, who fired through Durica's legs and past Ilya Abaev to give Zenit the lead. Zenit then held the ball for much of the rest of the half, not really threatening Lokomotiv's goal again but also not really being threatened themselves.

Halftime saw no changes from either team and Zenit came out in much the same way they had finished the half, but that soon changed as Lokomotiv started circulating the ball more and forcing Zenit into defence. However, before they could put any chances at goal together, the stadium was filled with smoke as fans set off flairs and smoke bombs, temporarily preventing the game from continuing. When the game resumed, Lokomotiv continued to push, but were almost hit on the break by Hulk, but Abaev was equal to his strong effort. The game then developed into something of a comedy, as both the referee and one of the linesmen inadvertently interfered with play, and the referee was injured in the process, leading to him being replaced by the fourth official, which took up roughly five minutes. A few minutes after play restarted, Danny went through on goal and gave the ball to Oleg Shatov in front of an open goal, but Roman Shishkin was able to make a game saving tackle and force a corner which came to nothing. Lokomotiv went straight back up the other end and Lodygin fumbled a cross to Sergei Tkachev, who slotted away coolly. Suffering an equaliser forced Zenit into action, and they almost took the lead when Hulk played Aleksandr Anyukov through with an excellent pass, but the right back cross for nobody in particular.

Both sides had a few half-chances in regular time, but ultimately the referee (now fourth official) indicated that there was to be seven minutes of stoppage time. Substitute Roman Pavlyuchenko had a chance to score but got the ball caught up in his feet and was dispossessed, before Boussoufa created space with some excellent footwork and floated in a cross, but it was too high for Samedov and Pavlyuchenko. Witsel then created space down the other end and had a shot on goal, but it was blocked by Yanbaev and the game then ended in a draw.

Man of the Match: Axel Witsel
Witsel was excellent all game, dictating Zenit's play when they were in control, but also defending well when they were under pressure in the second half.

Honourable Mentions:
Nicolas Lombaerts - Defended solidly and distributed well from the back. A solid performance from the Belgian.
Sergei Tkachev - Scored the equaliser and was good cutting in off that left flank right until he was substituted.
Lassana Diarra - Came off the bench and really got Lokomotiv back into the game with some great all around play.

Notes:
- This game really had everything. Keeper mistakes, referee injuries, spectator interference and boots to the head (Nicolas Lombaerts on Roman Pavlyuchenko late on), as well as some fantastic and entertaining football.
- The inclusion of N'Doye and Yanbaev really can't be explained. Roman Pavlyuchenko looked much better than N'Doye once the switch was made, while Yanbaev did a poor job of stopping Hulk.
- The narrow play of Zenit caused real problems for Lokomotiv in the first half, but the hosts managed to counteract that after the break (especially after Diarra's introduction) and were outnumbered in midfield far less.
- Seriously, this game. Wow.

Rostov 1-1 Anzhi: Two very different halves lead to fair draw

Rostov were the better side in the first half, while Anzhi took advantage of Alexandru Gatcan's dismissal to overrun the hosts in the second half, leading to a fair 1-1 draw.

Rostov had to contend with Timofey Kalachev and Guelor Kanga Kaku's suspensions, and thus started Georgi Gabulov in Kaku's place behind Artem Dzyuba. To fill Kalachev's spot, Zhano Ananidze was shifted to the right, Hrvoje Milic was pushed up to the left wing and Timofey Margasov filled in at left back. Anzhi also had missing players, with Oleksandr Aliev and Karlen Mkrtchyan both injured, so Makhach Gadzhiev and Ilya Maksimov started for the visitors.

Neither side started particularly well, but Rostov were arguably the better side in the early minutes as Ananidze dictated play, and it was only the profligacy of Artem Dzyuba that prevented them from going up after just five minutes. Azim Fatullaev fired one wide from outside of the box about ten minutes later, but ultimately the next major chance was the one that gave Rostov the lead. Gabulov went down easily under pressure from Gadzhiev in the box and a penalty was awarded to the hosts. It was a soft call, and Dzyuba's resulting effort was similarly weak but enough to get the job done. Rostov then continued to have the better of the chances, but didn't really come close for the remainder of the half. Anzhi similarly had a few chances, but failed to threaten heavily and, as a result, Rostov went into the break ahead.

Anzhi came out after the interval with all guns blazing and dominated the first ten minutes of the second half. Rostov looked to get back into the game after that time, but all of the wind was taken out of their sails when Alexandru Gatcan was shown a second yellow and sent off. Anzhi almost capitalised on their man advantage just four minutes later, but had a goal disallowed in comical fashion. Vladimir Bystrov had a deflected shot dribbling across the line, but the offside Fyodor Smolov tapped it in from point blank range, leading to the goal being unnecessarily disallowed. The visitors had to wait another quarter of an hour for their actual equaliser, when a scramble in the Rostov box allowed substitute Diniyar Bilyaletdinov to fire home. Anzhi kept pressing, but Rostov were all over every attacking effort the visitors could launch and ultimately managed to hold on for a point at home.

Man of the Match: Arseni Logashov
Logashov bombed down Rostov's right flank to account for Ananidze's drifting inside, and was incredibly effective at controlling that side of the pitch for the first half. When required to defend after Gatcan's dismissal, he protected Rostov's goal as well as could possibly be expected.

Honourable Mentions:
Diniyar Bilyaletdinov - Came off the bench and scored the equaliser, but was otherwise largely invisible.
Zhano Ananidze - Drifted inside off the right flank constantly and dictated all of Rostov's play in the first half, but didn't really have any impact defending in the second.

Notes:
- Ananidze and Logashov was a great pairing down Rostov's right side, as Ananidze drifted in and pulled markers inside to give Logashov more room for his huge runs.
- Both of Gatcan's yellows were completely fair and Rostov's fans can have no complaints about the dismissal.
- The disallowed Anzhi goal was absolutely hilarious. Bystrov was furious in the aftermath, and justifiably so. There was no need for Smolov to even go near it.

Volga 0-5 Dynamo: Dynamo bounce back from Anzhi defeat by steamrolling Volga

Dynamo put on a magnificent second half performance to continue Volga's losing streak and bounce back from a disappointing defeat to Anzhi last weekend.

Neither side lined up particularly oddly, with the most interesting decision being the continued inclusion of Georgi Gabulov in Dynamo's goal over Anton Shunin and Roman Berezovskiy. Dynamo also continued to field Aleksei Ionov on the left to account for Yuri Zhirkov's injury.

Volga started incredibly well, controlling possession and pushing well up the pitch for the first seven minutes or so, before Dynamo finally fired themselves up and got into the game. The middle stretch of the half was dominated by the visitors, and Kuranyi had a decent penalty shout turned down in the 19th minute. Ionov came close with a low shot shortly after that, but Volga worked their way back into contention with the half winding down, managing to limit their opposition's time on the ball and forcing several errors in Dynamo's back four. Dynamo did get one final chance when the ball fell for Aleksei Kozlov on the edge of the Volga box, but he fired high and wide. It was the last major chance of the half and both sides went into the interval scoreless.

The second half started much the same way that the first had, with Volga playing well in the opening minutes, but the wind was taken out of their sails when Aleksandr Kokorin scored Dynamo's first in the 53rd minute. He played Balazs Dzsudzsak through, allowing the Hungarian to send a cross back in and Kokorin headed home from the edge of the six yard box. Volga did manage to hold on for a short while longer before Dynamo scored a flurry of late goals to turn a narrow win into an utter demolition. Artur Nigmatullin saved a Vladimir Granat free kick, but the ball fell to substitute Artur Yusupov, who fired home to double Dynamo's lead. Just two minutes later, Aleksei Ionov sent a cross in for Alan Kasaev, who finished coolly. Christopher Samba made it 4-0 with a clone of Yusupov's goal before Christian Noboa cut the ball back to Alan Kasaev for his second of the match. Ultimately the scoreline doesn't really represent how even the first 50 minutes of the game were, but Dynamo will be happy to have bounced back with such a result.

Man of the Match: Alan Kasaev
Kasaev came off the bench and scored Dynamo's third and fifth goals. That's really all that needs to be said about his performance.

Honourable Mentions:
Aleksandr Kokorin - The 22 year old was dangerous all match and kicked off the scoring with a solid header before being substituted.
Vladimir Granat - Both of the set piece goals came from Granat free kicks being deflected into the path of an onrushing player, so the left back was a crucial part in inflating the scoreline.

Notes:
- This game was pretty back and forth up until Kokorin's goal, and Volga even managed to keep in it for a while afterwards, but they were torn apart by Dynamo's second and third goals and it was pretty clear to see that they gave up after that.
- Aleksandr Kokorin seems to take a huge beating every single match. I can't really explain it.
- Artur Nigmatullin's handling really desperately needs some work. He was directly at fault for both set piece goals.

Krasnodar 0-2 Rostov: Hosts dominant but punished for carelessness

Krasnodar ran riot against Rostov, but counters and a penalty doomed the hosts to defeat. However, Rostov still don't look capable of catching and surpassing Krasnodar, with five points separating them with six games still to play.

Both sides were somewhat damaged by injuries, as Krasnodar had to play Evgeni Shipitsin in place of the injured Wanderson, while Rostov played Zhano Ananidze centrally and brought Dmitri Poloz in to play out left to cover for the suspended Guelor Kanga Kaku. Anton Amelchenko and Igor Khudobyak came in for Stipe Pletikosa and Alexandru Gatcan respectively, as they were both injured.

Almost nothing at all happened in the first period, and the sides were mostly even for much of the half. Ari had one of the few chances when he got a header on target from a Nikolai Markov cross, but Amelchenko made a solid save. Rostov went forward in the first and only minute of stoppage time, and Artem Dzyuba headed on target from close range after a Timofey Kalachev cross. Andrei Sinitsyn made the save, but Ananidze was there to tap it in and give Rostov the lead going into the break.

Krasnodar came out of the gates firing after the interval and forced the visitors onto the back foot immediately. Amelchenko had to make two saves to excellent strikes from Joaozinho within the first quarter of an hour, while substitute Yuri Gazinskiy also came close with 25 minutes left to play. Up the other end, Rostov were wasteful, with the few shots they had going wildly off target. They barely got into Krasnodar's box, while the hosts consistently found men in the Rostov box thanks to plenty of accurate crosses. Both Komlichenko and Joaozinho almost equalised just 10 minutes from time, but Amelchenko was equal to the first, while the Brazilian's effort was deflected narrowly wide for a corner. With 5 minutes left to go, Ananidze was withdrawn in favour of Igor Lolo as Rostov shut up shop to hold onto their minute lead. Ultimately, this plan proved to be more than successful as Rostov went up the other end on a counter and drew a penalty in the final seconds of stoppage time, allowing Artem Dzyuba to take the chance and finish off the game.

Man of the Match: Zhano Ananidze
Ananidze not only scored the first goal, but controlled possession for much of the first half from his preferred central role. Surprisingly competent in defence when called upon, his passing was also a joy to behold.

Honourable Mentions:
Anton Amelchenko - Kept Rostov in the game at times with a few excellent saves, but also tended to be a bit shaky.
Joaozinho - Looked like a constant threat to score throughout the game, and quite often it was only Amelchenko that denied him an equaliser for most of the second half.

Notes:
- The match was fairly even in the first half, but then Krasnodar just rolled over Rostov after the interval. One might point to the introduction of Yuri Gazinskiy, but he wasn't that great so I really can't explain Krasnodar's improvement.
- Zhano moving back central was incredible, and he was significantly better defensively than I remember.
- Amelchenko is a competent back-up for Pletikosa, but his handling could use some work. He was a bit shaky at times.

Ural 2-1 Anzhi: Hosts dominate but allow late chances

Ural dominated Anzhi for the majority of the 90 minutes and went two goals up, but allowed Anzhi several chances late on, one of which allowed the visitors a consolation goal from a corner.

Neither side lined up particularly strangely, with Ural using a very attacking 4-1-4-1 with Gerson Acevedo and Aleksandr Erokhin sitting just behind Spartak Gogniev. Meanwhile, Anzhi set up with their standard 4-2-3-1, playing Diniyar Bilyaletdinov and Oleksandr Aliev on the wings, yet the two constantly interchanged to try to find a way through.

Ural started the match firmly in control of the ball and looked dominant early on, coming close through Chisamba Lungu in the opening four minutes. Unfortunately, the match was marred by an early injury, as Ural's Vladimir Koman went down early on and had to be replaced by Aleksandr Stavpets. Mere moments later, Ural went ahead as Acevedo played an excellent through ball which was seemingly destined for Erokhin, however he left it and drew Alexandru Epureanu out of position. The ball then found Gogniev who slotted coolly past Anzhi keeper Mikhail Kerzhakov. It was Lungu that had the next chance, but he sent the ball high and wide despite shooting from just outside of the six-yard box. Anzhi finally managed to get some possession after this chance and created one of their own seven minutes later as Fyodor Smolov was sent through on goal, but Ural's Nikolai Zabolotny was equal to his effort and sent the ball for a corner. The middle of the half slowed considerably, with Ilya Maksimov coming closest but never really threatening the goal, and it looked like Ural would go into the half with just a one goal lead. However, this was not to be the case as, five minutes from half time, Acevedo chipped a pass over Anzhi's defence and the onrushing Erokhin volleyed it past Kerzhakov to make it 2-0.

The second half was significantly less exciting as neither side really pushed forward much and, as a result, chances were few and far between. Khozin came close with a header from a free kick ten minutes after the interval, but Kerzhakov was able to make the save easily. It wasn't for another twenty minutes that a chance came around, when Erokhin headed wide from a Dantsev cross. The match looked set to wind down, but it turned out that the excitement would only ramp up, as Zabolotny was forced to save a Gadzhibekov header at full stretch. At the resulting corner, Serder Serderov connected with a header that hit the crossbar, falling to Agalarov who headed it back across goal before Epureanu connected with a third header just over Zabolotny to bring it back to 2-1. Ural had one chance to finish the game off after Anzhi's goal, but Aleksandr Novikov sent the ball high and wide, so the hosts had to settle for a somewhat nervy finish.

Man of the Match: Gerson Acevedo
Acevedo was excellent on the ball all match long, setting up both Ural goals with fantastic passes. He was a little weak defensively, as per usual, but given his role for the team it's somewhat understandable.

Honourable Mentions:
Aleksandr Erokhin - The most dangerous threat on either side for most of the match, Erokhin was very unlucky not to add a second to his tally.
Alexandru Epureanu - Got Anzhi's consolation goal and continued a good run of form.

Notes:
- Ural were by far the better side for most of this match. They rolled over Anzhi in the first half and even when they weren't creating chances, they maintained the majority of possession. Anzhi were only really let into the match in the final ten minutes.
- It's got to be a really tough decision over whether to pick Spartak Gogniev or Edgar Manucharyan to start at striker for Ural.
- I remember when both Zabolotny and Kerzhakov were seen as promising keepers and no one had ever heard of Yuri Lodygin. Those were dark days.

Amkar 0-0 Lokomotiv: Two of Russia's best defences draw predictably

Amkar and Lokomotiv played out something of a predictable draw given the high quality of their defences, yet Amkar should still be happy with holding the league leaders to a draw.

Both managers made somewhat baffling selections in this match. Amkar's manager, Stanislav Cherchesov, continued his bizarre selection of Alexei Nikitin over Thomas Phibel in the centre of defence, and I really can't justify him playing Jakub Wawrzyniak over Dzhamaldin Kodzhaniyazov at left back either. Meanwhile, Lokomotiv's Mbark Boussoufa was dropped in favour of Magomed Ozdoev, presumably because the latter scored a decent goal against Krylia last weekend.

As was expected due to the excellent defences of these two teams, the match started slowly with neither side giving up any major chances. It was Amkar who had the first opportunity of the night as Wawrzyniak cleverly flicked on a Georgi Peev free kick and hit the post, but it wasn't long before Dame N'Doye went up the other end, hitting a shot on goal that was deflected off Dmitri Belorukov and saved easily by Sergei Narubin. The half continued without many chances until the 36th minute, when N'Doye was dragged down in the box by Nikitin, yet inexplicably no penalty was given. Amkar did end up having the final chance of the half however, as Maksim Kannunikov gathered up a long ball in the box, but was put off by pressure from Jan Durica and skied his shot in the final seconds of stoppage time.

The interval saw no changes for either side, but Amkar certainly came out of the gates with a renewed vigour and looked more likely to score. In the opening minutes of the second period, Aleksandr Kolomeitsev put a shot low across the face of goal, before N'Doye also came close just moments later. However, Amkar soon slowed down and the match returned to one of few chances, primarily given away by set pieces. Substitute Boussoufa came close with one such set piece, a free kick, while Lass Diarra flicked on a corner late on, but was unable to get it on target. Both managers attempted to change the game with substitutes as Loko brought on Roman Pavlyuchenko and Sergei Tkachev late on, while Amkar introduced Martin Jakubko and Patrick Twumasi, yet none of the four were able to make an impact on the match. Lokomotiv had one final chance late on when Amkar captain Belorukov gave away a free kick on the edge of the box in the final seconds of stoppage time, but the resulting effort from Aleksandr Samedov was disappointing and the match finished at 0-0.

Man of the Match: Vedran Corluka
As per usual, Corluka was on fine form and kept the opposing forwards quiet. His distribution from the back was excellent and he was absolutely dominant in the air. Surprisingly, he also had a few good runs forward, including one that won a free kick that Boussoufa came close from.

Honourable Mentions:
Roman Shishkin - Despite getting quite fired up over the course of the match, Shishkin was fantastic defensively and very good going forward. A solid match from the Loko captain.
Dmitri Belorukov - The Amkar captain was fantastic in defence as always and, despite his late foul, was well composed all match.
Janusz Gol - Solid in defence all match and controlled the little possession that Amkar had. The Polish midfielder's form has been good since the winter break after a disappointing first half of the season.

Notes:
- I'm impressed with Amkar's ability to keep this match level, but Lokomotiv's attack was completely toothless today. Dame N'Doye is far too inconsistent to be a top class forward (yes, he's even worse than Roman Pavlyuchenko in that respect).
- I really can't justify the selection of Alexei Nikitin over Thomas Phibel. Nikitin should've been sent off for that challenge on N'Doye and constantly failed to deal with crosses.
- Another selection that I'm not sure was right was Leonid Kuchuk selecting Magomed Ozdoev over Mbark Boussoufa. Ozdoev may have scored last week, but he's a selection for matches in which Loko is going to face a possession battle and want to keep the ball away from their opponents. For matches such as this, in which Amkar were never going to try and control possession, Boussoufa's a much better choice thanks to his great final ball and creativity.
- Maksim Kannunikov did seem rather isolated up front, and this wasn't really helped by his reluctance to drop deep. Peev, Ogude and Kolomeitsev usually have better service, but they were all kept relatively quiet by Loko's back line.

Dynamo 4-2 CSKA: Embarrassing capitulation rules CSKA out of title defence

CSKA have given up a two goal lead to lose 4-2 to Dynamo in the latest Moscow derby of the 2013-14 RPL season.

Both sides set up with their first choice lineups (see diagram), so there isn't really much to say about surprise inclusions or players missing due to injury/suspension. The only thing of note is that Alexei Kozlov made his Dynamo debut after joining from Kuban Krasnodar over the winter break, but I'll get to him a little later.

The match was very back and forth in the opening ten minutes, with Dynamo having two good chances and CSKA only being stopped by a slightly over-hit Seydou Doumbia pass. It wasn't long before Doumbia made up for his minor error as, in only the 12th minute, he skinned three Dynamo players and fired home a rocket of a shot from the edge of the box to give the visitors an early lead. Dynamo appeared to have the wind taken out of their sails by this, and Georgi Gabulov had to endure a flurry of CSKA chances over the following quarter of an hour, denying Zoran Tosic twice. However, things got even worse for the hosts as their brand new signing, Alexei Kozlov, pulled up short after challenging Ahmed Musa for the ball and had to be replaced. CSKA continued their attack following Kozlov's injury and came close through Alan Dzagoev, but were denied yet again by Gabulov. Gabulov couldn't hold out forever though, and Doumbia managed to get his second in the 43rd minute. Dzagoev beat two Dynamo defenders in the box and then sent the ball to the Ivorian, who finished perfectly with the outside of his boot to double CSKA's lead.

Halftime saw no personnel changes for either side, but Dynamo came out after the break looking significantly less incompetent than they had before the interval and as a result, they pulled one back with the first major chance of the half. The hosts built up play down the left flank and Yuri Zhirkov sent in a cross, which Kevin Kuranyi managed to get to first and head home from the edge of the 6-yard box. It wasn't long before Kuranyi had another header on target, but this time Akinfeev was able to reach it at full stretch to deny the German. For a few brief moments, CSKA looked like they were back on top as Georgi Schennikov stormed into Dynamo's box, beating four opposition players before being stopped by an excellent Christopher Samba tackle. Samba then continued his great performance by getting up the end and scoring the equaliser from a Marko Lomic cross. However, he suffered a head clash with Aleksandr Kokorin in the process of scoring, forcing him to come off and be replaced by Leandro Fernandez. Already staring at an embarrassing result, CSKA decided that conceding two goals wasn't enough, so only four minutes later they conceded a third, this time through Zhirkov, who controlled a Balazs Dzsudzsak cross and slotted it home. However, the goal arguably shouldn't have stood as Kokorin kicked Mario Fernandes in the face as the cross came in; an act which should have been given as a foul. It was only another six minutes before CSKA conceded again, this time thanks to a huge Igor Akinfeev error. The CSKA captain tried to lob the ball to Fernandes, yet failed to get it over Zhirkov who, all too easily, took the ball over Akinfeev and finished coolly for his second of the night.

Neither side really had any major chances for the rest of the match and it ended at 4-2. Dynamo's comeback from two goals down is an absolutely excellent demonstration of their class and attitude, whereas CSKA's utter capitulation is one of the most embarrassing defeats that the club has suffered in years. The champions now face an uphill battle to retain their title, sitting 6 points back from joint leaders Zenit and Lokomotiv, who both have a game in hand.

Notes:
- I really have no words for CSKA's awful collapse. They were dominant for most of the first half, only to fall apart after the interval. A real game of two halves.
- This defeat is unfortunately going to overshadow the excellent performances of Seydou Doumbia and Alan Dzagoev, who ran everything for CSKA in the first half. In particular, their combination on the second goal was beautiful.
- On that note, Doumbia and Dzagoev really deserve better wingers than Tosic and Musa. Tosic is ridiculously inconsistent and Musa appears to have lost a touch of the pace he relies on so much.
- Luke Wilkshire and Leandro Fernandez did surprisingly well after coming in for the injured Alexei Kozlov and Christopher Samba respectively.
- A lot of people are going to disagree with me over this, but I think other than that big error, Igor Akinfeev was on superb form. He had no chance to stop any of the other three goals and made several superb saves earlier in the match.

Man of the Match: Yuri Zhirkov
Zhirkov was a dangerous threat down Dynamo's left all night and ultimately got the best of the out of form Mario Fernandes. Zhirkov scored the final two goals for Dynamo to win and kill off the game, but also provided an assist for Kuranyi's goal with an excellent cross. It was also his cross that produced Kuranyi's second chance that was saved by Akinfeev.

Honourable Mentions:
Seydou Doumbia - Scored two fantastic goals to put CSKA up and continued his performance with some excellent skill throughout the night. His passing was a little astray though, over-hitting several passes for Ahmed Musa.
Alan Dzagoev - Bossed Dynamo's midfield for much of the first half and had an excellent assist for Doumbia's second goal. Dzagoev dropped deeper than usual this game and controlled the tempo of play. On another night, this would've easily been a man of the match performance.
Christopher Samba - Worked hard in defence and did well to get up the other end and score the equaliser. His match was unfortunately ended by that head clash, but he certainly deserves recognition for the time he did spend on the pitch.

Dynamo 2-0 Amkar: Visitors punished on counters

Dynamo pulled away to a 2-0 home victory over Amkar, dragging their table position up to fourth going into the winter break.


Dynamo lined up with no major surprises, the only change from last week's 3-0 win over Ural being the inclusion of Christopher Samba over Alan Kasaev, pushing Vladimir Granat to left back and Yuri Zhirkov up to Kasaev's left wing spot. Amkar were also largely unchanged, the only difference from their loss to Rubin on Monday being the inclusion of Ivan Cherenchikov at centre back due to Dmitri Belorukov's suspension.

The opening half an hour was a rather dull affair, with neither side willing to push forward and risk an opposing counter-attack. As a result, possession was even and shots were fairly limited before the match really started to open up in the 35th minute. Balazs Dzsudzsak had a good free kick deflected wide for a goal kick, despite coming off an Amkar player before going out. Mere minutes later, Yuri Zhirkov played an excellent ball in for Aleksandr Kokorin, yet the ball got caught up in his feet before a finish could be applied, allowing Thomas Phibel to clear the danger. This was immediately followed by Kevin Kuranyi being sent through on goal by a fantastic pass from Christian Noboa, but it was given as offside in an extremely questionable decision. Regardless, it proved to be the last chance of the half for either side.

The only change at the half was the removal of Kokorin in favour of Vladimir Dyadyun, a decision that paid off almost immediately. A defensive blunder sent both Dyadyun and Kuranyi into the box mere seconds into the half, but Dyadyun was unable to control Kuranyi's flick-on, and the chance came to nothing. The following minutes went the complete other way however, as Amkar pressured well. Maksim Kannunikov played an excellent cross for Georgi Peev, who was only inches away from getting a touch on it and potentially directing it goalwards. It was at this point that Dynamo finally took advantage of Amkar's large numbers in attack, starting a very fast counter-attack that ultimately had the ball end up with Zhirkov on the left wing. The Russian international played a lofted cross in for the onrushing Kuranyi, who headed down past Sergei Narubin to give Dynamo the lead. The goal gave Dynamo the confidence to push forward, and Amkar were forced firmly onto the back foot, struggling to effectively build up attacks or withstand the pressure from the hosts. Amkar finally got back into the game about 10 minutes later, pushing forward well but lacking the final ball time and time again. After a spell of sustained pressure from the visitors, a Dynamo counter led to Martin Jakubko giving away a penalty, which Kuranyi converted excellently to take his brace and close out the scoring.

Notes:
 - Despite playing four at the back, Dynamo quite often looked like they were playing three centre backs, due to Luke Wilkshire's constant (and poorly executed) bombing up the right flank and Vladimir Granat's disposition to drift centrally.
- Aleksandr Kokorin was absolutely battered in the first half, soaking up foul after foul. I suspect this is a large reason why he was very ineffective and looked off the pace.
- Contrastingly, upon being substituted on, Vladimir Dyadyun was incredibly effective. Rather than sitting behind Kuranyi and constantly coming deep for the ball like Kokorin, Dyadyun pushed up alongside the German and pressured the Amkar defence.
- Speaking of the Amkar defence, they were really confident in dribbling out of the back. While it sometimes came back to bite them (such as for Dzsudzsak's excellent free kick in the 35th minute), it also paid off as they were able to maintain possession for extended periods.

Man of the Match: Kevin Kuranyi
Opened the scoring with an excellent header past Sergei Narubin, before killing off the match with an excellent penalty into the top left corner. Kuranyi was always dangerous, making several runs in behind the defence to latch onto through balls from Christian Noboa and Igor Denisov.

Honourable Mentions:
Christian Noboa - Certainly the most creative player on the pitch for either side, he was constantly looking for the perfect ball to start a counter or break through Amkar's defence, and succeeded on numerous occasions.
Thomas Phibel - A rock at the heart of Amkar's defence, he distributed well from the back. However, he did look shaky in the air and could have been sent of for an "accidental" hit on Balazs Dzsudzsak in the second half.

CSKA 1-0 Spartak: CSKA capitalise on Rebrov blunder

Seydou Doumbia capitalised on an Artem Rebrov mistake to score the only goal in an exciting Moscow derby, the first of the weekend.

Both sides retained their typical 4-2-3-1 formations as the hosts made just one change from the side that beat Terek two weeks ago, with Mario Fernandes returning to action after six months out with a knee injury. Spartak saw more changes, with Joao Carlos returning to first team action in place of the suspended Tino Costa, allowing Rafael Carioca to push forward into his preferred defensive midfield role. Kim Kallstrom and Ariz Ozbiliz were also replaced in favour of Jose Jurado and Pavel Yakovlev respectively.

Neither side started the match particularly strongly and passing was sloppy in the opening minutes as possession changed hands rapidly early on, before the scoring opened in the 7th minute. A ball forward from Pontus Wernbloom prompted Artem Rebrov to come out and attempt to clear, but poor judgement meant that Doumbia got to the ball ahead of both Rebrov and Evgenni Makeev, tapping it up over them and slotting home coolly. It was a woeful error of judgement from Rebrov, however Makeev was also partially at fault for not dealing with the ball earlier. Despite going behind, it was Spartak who looked strongest as they pushed forward, but lacked the final ball into the box as Glushakov and Jurado struggled to create chances. Indeed, it was CSKA who had the next chance, when Zoran Tosic flicked the ball over Dmitri Kombarov and went one on one with Rebrov, who saved well and went some way to redeeming his earlier error. It was not until ten minutes later that Spartak finally got their chance when a Jurado free kick fell to Glushakov, whose shot was cleared off the line by Mario Fernandes. The most notable event of the remainder of the first half proved to be not a goal, but a foul on the verge of half time. Makeev was lucky not to be sent off for his challenge on Milanov, which led to a confrontation between players of both sides that the referee was able to manage and call half time.

CSKA came out firing after the break, and Keisuke Honda missed a simple chance within three minutes of the interval. Milanov broke through down the left and sent a perfect cross in, but instead of firing home, Honda took a touch away from goal and fired wide. It was a terrible effort at a point where the game could've been put beyond doubt. It was mere minutes later when Honda nearly made up for his miss, playing an excellent ball through to Doumbia, whose shot was blocked by Makeev. CSKA's following attack led to chances for all of Fernandes, Tosic, Milanov and Doumbia, yet none could find a way through to kill the match off. Nonetheless, they continued to push for a second goal and Wernbloom came close, heading the ball off the post from a Honda free kick. However, that proved to be the last big chance for CSKA, as Spartak forced themselves forwards in search of an equliser, with Jurado coming closest. Fifteen minutes from full time, he skipped through three challenges in the CSKA box before shooting straight at Akinfeev, who made a simple save. Following that chance, the match once again degenerated into a bunch of fouls and yellow cards, and from there the game fizzled out with CSKA taking the victory.

Notes:
- Spartak completely dominated possession but struggled to create chances. Their wastefulness gave CSKA many opportunities to counter-attack and get up the other end, but the hosts too lacked the final touch for much of the match.
- Yura Movsisyan definitely looked like he wasn't at 100% following his injury against Zenit. He seemed rather slow on the sprint and struggled to get involved.
- I'm not sure Pavel Yakovlev did anything while he was on the pitch. I really can't advocate starting him over either Aras Ozbiliz or Kirill Kombarov with McGeady on the left.
- On the other hand, Georgi Milanov really grew into the match, especially in the second half. He was dominant down the left flank and his performance was crucial in pinning back Sergei Parshivlyuk.

Man of the Match: Mario Fernandes
Fernandes made his return from a knee injury that kept him out of action for six months, yet managed to look like he hadn't missed a second. He was very good going forward, completing a higher percentage of passes than any other starter on either team, but the moment that separated him from the rest of the bunch was his fantastic block and clearance on the goal line in the 27th minute.

Honourable Mentions:
Georgi Schennikov - Included for similar reasons to Fernandes, Schennikov was great going forward and solid at the back. Fernandes only edges this due to his fantastic block.

Spartak 4-2 Zenit: Movsisyan hat-trick highlight of incredible match

Spartak fought to a well deserved 4-2 victory over Zenit, thanks largely to a Yura Movsisyan hat-trick, however the Armenian's match was marred by an injury just before the hour mark. Also, as a side note, there is a notable lack of a formation diagram as the website I use for it appears to be suffering some issues right now.

Both sides lined up primarily in their expected formations: Spartak in a 4-2-3-1 and Zenit in a 4-3-3, however both managers made a number of changes both out of necessity and choice. Valeri Karpin brought in Aras Ozbiliz for the suspended Jose Jurado, while Kim Kallstrom replaced injured Joao Carlos as Rafael Carioca was dropped to centre back. Sergey Pesjakov was dropped in favour of Artem Rebrov, who hadn't played a league match for Spartak in over a year. For their opponents, Luciano Spalletti dropped the group of Roman Shirokov, Luis Neto, Danny and Igor Smolnikov for Konstantin Zyryanov, Tomas Hubocan, Aleksandr Kerzhakov and Aleksandr Anyukov respectively.

Spartak's first half (and Movsisyan's in particular) didn't start very well as he picked up a yellow card within 30 seconds after handling the ball into Yuri Lodygin's woodwork. The hosts suffered further as Kerzhakov put Zenit in front after only 5 minutes thanks to a perfectly weighted Domenico Criscito cross. And then things appeared to go from bad to worse in the 19th minute as Tino Costa fouled Witsel in the box to give away a penalty. However, Rebrov was equal to Hulk's poor effort and managed to clear the resulting scramble to maintain the one goal gap. Things started to change around 10 minutes later, as Spartak pushed forward. Costa tested Lodygin with a shot from range before Movsisyan sent a glancing header in off the post from a corner to equalise. Mere minutes later, Ozbiliz fired just wide after a corner fell to him on the edge of the box, and Nicolas Lombaerts had to be replaced after a terrible challenge from Aiden McGeady. It took just 3 more minutes before Spartak took the lead, when a horrible Hubocan clearance fell straight to Movsisyan in the box and he slotted away coolly, but he was still not content with that. In the final play of the half, the Armenian rounded Lodygin and shot on target, but Hubocan went some way to redeeming himself for his earlier mistake by clearing the ball off the line to end the half with just a goal in it.

The second period began much as the first had ended, with Spartak dominant. So dominant in fact that Movsisyan bagged his hat-trick after Tino Costa sent a powerful cross into him after just over a minute. Unfortunately, that proved to be his last involvement as he twisted painfully just 10 minutes later and had to come off the pitch, yet was able to move to the sideline under his own power. Zenit looked fired up upon immediately conceding and managed to turn the flow of the game back in their favour and the added pressure paid off when Hulk smashed home an excellent free kick in the 64th minute to bring the visitors back within one goal. However, this goal seemed to give Zenit the impression that they could sit back and relax and, as a result, Spartak retook control of the match. Their renewed possession finally became important in the final 10 minutes, as substitute Luxas Barrios knocked home a Glushakov free kick, but his goal was disallowed for offside. Nonetheless, just 3 minutes later, Glushakov made a barnstorming run through Zenit's midfield and defence to finish off the match with an excellent individual goal. The visitors mounted a minor attack with minutes to go, but it was too little too late for Zenit and the match finished 4-2.

Notes:
- Yura Movsisyan was absolutely incredible in the hour that he was on the pitch. Not only was his finishing perfect, but his contribution to build-up play and his efforts in winning the ball back in the final third were excellent.
- Artem Rebrov had an up and down match. He was largely at fault for Zenit's two goals, yet was excellent in making saves outside of those two slip-ups.
- Hulk too was rather inconsistent today, as he worked well on the ball to create several chances, but struggled to get involved at times. His penalty was poorly taken, but his free kick was precisely the opposite and was fired into just the right area.
- So far this season Zenit have had an issue of starting halves slowly and taking hold of the match as play went on, but this match was the complete opposite of that. Aside from one chance at the beginning of each half, Zenit were dominant early but let their grasp slip as each period went on.

Man of the Match: Yura Movsisyan
Absolutely perfect performance from him. Could've had at least 1 or 2 more had his match not been marred by injury.

Honourable Mentions:
Denis Glushakov - Dangerous with the ball in the centre of the park, and his individual goal was well taken. He also dropped deep often to help in defence.
Aleksandr Kerzhakov - Constantly making dangerous runs into Spartak's box, but ultimately all but one came to nothing.

Rostov 0-0 Rubin: Hosts dangerous yet fail to take chances

Rostov and Rubin played out a surprisingly exciting match that unfortunately ended in a goalless draw. In other news, From Beyond the Iron Curtain is back from hiatus with a new match report format which, in addition to detailing the events of the match and highlighting the best players, will include a notes section that features more general information about the course of the match.

Both sides started in their preferred 4-2-3-1 formations, with only one major change to Rubin's lineup and three to Rostov's. For Rubin, Solomon Kvirkvelia replaced the injured Ivan Marcano, while Rostov's Siyanda Xulu took Bastos's place in the starting XI after the former gave away a penalty against Spartak last week. Rostov's Spartak loanees Artem Dzyuba and Zhano Ananidze also returned to the starting lineup after having to sit out against their parent club.

Rostov opened the match well, looking sharp on the ball, yet they often lacked the off-the-ball runs to meet the ambitious passes of Ananidze and Timofey Kalachev. From the outset, Ananidze looked key to Rostov's chances of breaking through, as his dribbles off the wing wreaked havoc for Rubin's back line. Indeed, it was the Georgian wonderkid who provided the first chance of the match when his cross from the left fell to Dzyuba, who volleyed well wide from 10 yards. For the majority of the next 15 minutes, Rostov looked for a way through a stern Rubin defence, with an Ananidze through ball barely claimed by Sergei Ryzhikov before an onrushing Dzyuba could reach it. However, after a quick counter resulted in a Rubin corner, Kvirkvelia forced Stipe Pletikosa into an excellent acrobatic save to keep the visitors goalless. Minutes later, after a good dribble off the left wing, Guelor Kanga fired a good shot from long range, yet Ryzhikov claimed it easily. Ananidze and Kanga continued to be dangerous, their interplay across the pitch causing problems for Yann M'Vila in particular, who struggled with the greater numbers of Rostov's attackers. However, the final major chance before half time came from Rubin, who saw a Ruslan Mukhametshin goal rightfully called back for offside.

Rubin introduced Roman Eremenko in the place of Wakaso Mubarak after the break and the move looked the right one, as the visitors immediately looked more ambitious and dangerous. Rubin saw the first chance of the half as Mukhametshin put the ball wide from close range after being put through by Bibras Natkho, while Rostov almost went ahead 15 minutes later through Ananidze after he volleyed a chipped pass just across the face of goal. However, from then on everything went Rubin's way as the hosts were slowly shut out of the match. Karadeniz fired close over the crossbar after a quick passing move that covered most of the pitch, while the final chance of the match fell to Oleg Kuzmin, whose powerful header was held excellently by Pletikosa in the second minute of stoppage time. Ultimately however, the match ended goalless despite the plethora of chances for both sides.

Notes:

- Rostov had an excellent first half as they used all of Ananidze, Kanga and Kalachev to full effect. M'Vila and Natkho looked unable to cope.

- The Eremenko substitution was the perfect switch. Wakaso had done next to nothing in the first half and Rubin needed more physicality rather than finesse going forwards.

- Zhano Ananidze continues to show his potential week in week out, but he needs a bit more refinement to compete at the highest level. The 21 year old could perhaps be considered too ambitious, but his desire to impact games is clear.

- Contrastingly, Artem Dzyuba was uncharacteristically poor. There were several Ananidze through balls that most forwards would have been able to reach, yet Dzyuba looked off the pace and his touch was very bad.

Man of the Match: Guelor Kanga
Constantly dangerous both on and off the ball, Kanga earned six free kicks for his side and almost beat Ryzhikov with an excellent long range shot.

Honourable Mentions:
Gokdeniz Karadeniz - Seemed to be behind every Rubin attack and was very dangerous dribbling in from the left.
Zhano Ananidze - Simply excellent throughout the first half but got marked out of the game as time went on. Nonetheless, he still managed to contribute effectively in defence on top of his normal creative duties.
Arseni Logashov - Excellent in dominating Rostov's right flank, getting forward well but also making a number of crucial tackles and interceptions.

Zenit 2-1 Lokomotiv: Match Takes Back Seat to Poor Officiating

What promised to be a good match was ultimately ruined by poor officiating as referee Sergei Ivanov failed to contain tensions between the two teams and ultimately awarded each side an unnecessary penalty.

Both sides lined up basically as expected, Zenit in their typical 4-3-3, with a midfield consisting of Konstantin Zyryanov, Axel Witsel and Roman Shirokov. Aleksandr Kerzhakov was the only change in the front three, replacing Oleg Shatov, while Tomas Hubocan started at left back despite the presence of Nicolas Lombaerts in the starting XI. Lokomotiv too went with their preferred formation, a 4-2-3-1, and their standard back four all got starts. Meanwhile, Lassana Diarra got his first start for Lokomotiv and Felipe Caicedo was favoured up front to Dame N'Doye and Roman Pavlyuchenko, both of whom started on the bench.

Zenit opened the match well, with Axel Witsel coming close within 5 minutes, however Ilya Abaev was there to make a solid save. Minutes later, we saw a sign of what was to come, as the referee dished out unnecessary cards to Aleksandr Kerzhakov and Vedran Corluka. The match continued in this vein when, following a Mbark Boussoufa free kick that rattled the crossbar, Luis Neto and Renat Ranbaev were also booked, with Yanbaev being the first player to actually deserve a card. It was Zenit who had the next chance, as Andrei Arshavin cut into the box from the right and shot across the face of goal, before Boussoufa shook the woodwork again 15 minutes later with a shot from just inside the box. As the half wound to an end, Roman Shirokov and Lassana Diarra tripped over one another in the Lokomotiv box, and the referee deemed it a professional foul (which was the wrong call in my opinion), sending Diarra off and awarding Zenit a penalty, which Shirokov confidently converted.

Now down a man, Lokomotiv manager Leonid Kuchuk was forced to make a defensive change, with Felipe Caicedo being replaced by Jan Tigorev at half time. It appeared to work at first, as Lokomotiv gained possession for long spells and coming close through Maicon and Dmitri Tarasov in the opening 10 minutes of the half. Their efforts finally paid off when, in the 69th minute, the referee made another poor decision, deeming that Igor Smolnikov handled the ball in the box and handing Lokomotiv a chance to equalise from the spot. Boussoufa took the opportunity and put the teams back on level terms, although Zenit pushed harder and finally started to retake control of the match. Nonetheless, Lokomotiv defended valiantly and appeared to have held the hosts to a draw when they were punished in the 86th minute. Danny dribbled into the Lokomotiv box and cut the ball back to Konstantin Zyryanov (seriously, that guy is still playing?!), who shot past Abaev from the edge of the box, ending the match at 2-1 to Zenit.

Man of the Match: Mbark Boussoufa
Boussoufa was excellent on the ball, creating a number of chances with his excellent passing. He was unlucky not to score from open play, however he made up for it by scoring the penalty.

Honourable Mentions:
Nicolas Lombaerts - Solid at the back and confident on the ball, Lombaerts relieved pressure on his midfielders by taking up some of the playmaking burden.
Roman Shirokov - Shirokov had an unusually poor passing game, yet was fantastic with the ball at his feet and confidently converted from the spot to put the hosts in front.
Dmitri Tarasov - Tarasov didn't put a foot out of line all match, effectively creating play and breaking up Zenit attacks with apparent ease.

Dynamo 1-1 Zenit: Visitors take undeserved point

Dynamo thoroughly outplayed Zenit today, but were robbed by Aleksandr Kerzhakov's header with the last touch of the game.

Dynamo put out an entirely unsurprising 4-2-3-1, with Luke Wilkshire replacing Nikita Chicherin as Dan Petrescu's only change from the side that drew with Krasnodar last week. Meanwhile, Luciano Spalletti put out a somewhat surprising lineup, with a front three composed of debutant Oleg Shatov and two left wingers in Danny and Andrei Arshavin. The two alternated throughout the first half, yet Arshavin was arguably the more central of the two.

Neither side opened the match particularly well, but Dynamo had the first chance of the match as Fyodor Smolov headed a perfectly weighted Balazs Dzsudzsak cross wide of the far post in just the 5th minute. Six minutes later, it was Zenit with a chance as Christian Ansaldi sent a low cross for Roman Shirokov, who was fresh off a hat-trick in Portugal on Wednesday, however Dynamo keeper Roman Berezovski got to the ball first and prevented a scoring opportunity. Next up was Dzsudzsak, who unleashed a long range shot that Yuri Lodygin only barely held, before Denisov unleashed another minutes later that also challenged the keeper. There was only one more chance for either side before the break, as Lodygin was called into action yet again, saving well at the feet of Alan Kasaev while Nicolas Lombaerts blocked Artur Yusupov's following effort.

Only one change was made at the interval, as Spalletti shifted to a more conventional approach, replacing the ineffective Arshavin with Aleksandr Kerzhakov, a decision that would eventually prove to be the right one. Dynamo came out of the blocks on fire, and before long Dzsudzsak had put them in front from a good shot that took a deflection off the back of Lombaerts. The hosts then became content to hold onto possession and sit deep, launching the occasional attack forward, but coming to nothing for the most part. Finally, substitute Vladimir Dyadyun had a good chance, but once again Lodygin made an excellent save. Zenit immediately sent the ball up the other end and the ball fell loose in Dynamo's box, however no one was able to apply a finish. Dzsudzsak went head to head again with Lodygin in the first minute of stoppage time, but the keeper came out on top once more, and his efforts were repaid up the other end when Shirokov flicked the ball onto Kerzhakov, who finished coolly with an excellent diving header. Dynamo were punished despite being the better team for the majority, as Zenit pulled a draw out of their hats with literally the final touch of the game.

Man of the Match: Yuri Lodygin
Lodygin was on spectacular form as he went one on one with Dynamo's forwards and came out on top time after time. He was unlucky to concede off a deflection, but performed admirably considering his defenders left him to do much of their work.

Honourable Mentions:
Balazs Dzsudzsak - For most of the match, he was Dynamo's only forward offering anything going forward. His goal was somewhat lucky, but he would have scored had it not been for Lodygin's fantastic performance.
Roman Berezovski - Played well, yet was overshadowed by Lodygin's performance at the other end.

CSKA 1-0 Kuban: CSKA held to one goal despite overall dominance

CSKA triumphed at home, however could probably have scored more than they did in a 1-0 victory. Also, for the first time this match report will include an honourable mentions list for the man of the match award.

CSKA sent out their typical 4-2-3-1, although with a few positional switches. Dzagoev dropped into the double pivot with Pontus Wernbloom, while the attacking midfield band of 3 read as Steven Zuber, Keisuke Honda and Ahmed Musa from left to right, with Seydou Doumbia lining up at striker. Meanwhile, Kuban lined up with their traditional lineup, however Ivelin Popov dropped deep into midfield to swap it from a 4-4-2 into a 4-3-3.

CSKA came right out of the gates on the attack, troubling Kuban's midfield and defence with their fluid front four. When 10 minutes rolled around on the clock, Alan Dzagoev had the first major attempt of the match, when his 35 yard piledriver was saved by Aleksandr Belenov. However, Belenov would not do so well less than a minute later when Ahmed Musa turned and shot low to the right of goal from a long Keisuke Honda pass for the only goal of the half, and ultimately the match. CSKA didn't hold off there however, as Dzagoev sent a scintillating free kick just over Seydou Doumbia's head 12 minutes later. Kuban then turned around for their first real attempt of the match when Charles Kabore sent his long range effort straight at Igor Akinfeev, who saved confidently. Kuban followed this up 5 minutes later with a calamitous miss from point blank range by Ivelin Popov following a corner. Before long however, CSKA were back on top, and Dzagoev sent a first time shot just over the bar from the edge of the box. Unfortunately, despite their dominance CSKA only went into the half one goal to the good.

Both sides appeared to come out after half time with a different mentality, as Kuban pressed more, while CSKA appeared happy to sit on the ball in possession, although the match progressed in much the same way as it had before the break. Dzagoev continued having a fantastic game as he dictated play all over the pitch, sending a long ball into Kuban's box just before the hour mark, however Doumbia was unable to finish the chance. CSKA's final 3 chances all came from Dzagoev as well, as he fed a through ball for Ahmed Musa 25 minutes from the end, however the Nigerian sent the ball straight at Belenov. Dzagoev also fed substitute Zoran Tosic 10 minutes from time, but again the effort was straight at the keeper. Finally in stoppage time, Dzagoev sent a strong effort at goal that Belenov got in the way of. Musa got his head to the rebound, yet Belenov was there again to stop the effort, before he also touched away Honda's point blank attempt to finish out the match.

Man of the Match: Alan Dzagoev
Dzagoev may have had the game of his career today, as he controlled the match from start to finish. Not only did he create almost every CSKA chance, but he also had two excellent shots from long range and a few excellent set pieces.

Honourable Mentions:
Aleksandr Belenov - Fantastic keeping, capped off with a triple save in stoppage time.
Charles Kabore - The key man for Kuban. Had a number of excellent passes throughout the game.
Ahmed Musa - Well taken goal, as well as good movement off the ball for the rest of the match.

Dynamo 1-4 Spartak: Spartak dominate Moscow derby to make it 3 wins from 3

Spartak Moscow heaped on the goals in a confident first half against Dynamo, going up 4-0 at the break, allowing them to let off in the second half and eventually take the derby 4-1.

Spartak lined up in their typical 4-2-3-1 formation, with McGeady & Yakovlev taking up the flanks, Costa & Glushakov lining up in the double pivot and Carioca alongside Bocchetti in the heart of defence in the face of Sergei Bryzgalov's injury. Meanwhile, Dynamo lined up in a similar 4-2-3-1, but playmaker Roman Zobnin had to be replaced by Andriy Voronin early on and the lineup ended playing out like a 4-4-2 for the majority of the match (see diagram).

Dynamo started strongly, having the majority of chances in the first 5 minutes as Spartak looked weak in possession. However, Spartak's pressure on Dynamo's defence gave Jose Jurado a shooting opportunity, which he capitalised on, slotting the ball low to the left of the goal to give Spartak a 1-0 lead on 6 minutes. It didn't take long for the visitors to double their lead, when Aiden McGeady sent a long cross for Pavel Yakovlev, who controlled well and finished confidently bast Shunin. Despite being down two goals within 15 minutes, Dynamo fought on, but with little success. Their misery was heaped on even further at the half hour mark, when Leandro Fernandez made a poor attempt at a back pass. Emmanuel Emenike latched onto the ball and coolly finished to give Spartak a three goal lead. Spartak then finally got their last goal of the game just 3 minutes before half time, when Jurado sent a rocket into the top left corner from long range and send Dynamo into the half four goals down.

Spartak came out in the second half much more reserved than they had before the break. Dynamo however, pushed much harder for goals, but had little success. Voronin came close with a low shot to the right of goal in just after the hour, while Kasaev shot over the bar minutes later. Dynamo's only goal came after Salvatore Bocchetti fouled Kasaev in the box in the 79th minute, giving away a penalty. Voronin coolly converted, even though Pesyakov managed to get a hand to the ball. Just minutes later, substitute Vladimir Sobolev sent a volley just over the bar, but Dynamo had to settle for a 4-1 loss in one of the biggest derbies in the RPL.

Man of the Match: Jose Manuel Jurado
This was a tough choice, as it also could have gone to Pavel Yakovlev or Sergei Parshivlyuk, but Jurado gets the man of the match award for his two goals and constant creative threat. Both of his goals were impressive finishes and he completed all of his 42 attempted passes.

Rubin 2-1 Zenit: Rondon stuns visitors with last minute winner

Rubin took a back and forth game with a late Salomon Rondon winner, downing Zenit by a goal when the result really could have gone either way.

Zenit started promisingly by converting the first chance of the match. Bukharov tapped an Anyukov cross over Sergei Ryzhikov and Danny was there to slot the ball away and give Zenit the lead in only the 6th minute. Rubin however, were the controlling side for most of the first half, having greater possession and a number of close chances. Yann M'Vila had a long shot fumbled by Lodygin in the 19th, but the keeper was able to recover the ball before and Rubin players could follow it up. Despite having less possession, Zenit managed a number of chances on counter attacks, with Aleksandr Bukharov coming close twice after Danny fired across the face of goal. Salomon Rondon came close up the other end, but could not have any impact on the score before half time. Rubin went into the interval undeservedly trailing to Zenit, having been the better side.

Zenit were the only side to make a change at the break, replacing the error-prone Nicolas Lombaerts with Anatoliy Tymoschuk, and immediately looked better for it. The visitors looked more comfortable in possession and physically dominant, but suffered just 6 minutes in when Gokdenis Karadeniz knocked away the equaliser. Karadeniz attempted to score with a bicycle kick from a Prudnikov cross, but missed the ball, coolly slotting away after it fell to his feet in the following scramble. Conceding spurred Zenit into action, and Bukharov was soon replaced by Hulk, who was largely ineffective in a central role in his time on the pitch. With the match drawing to a close, Hulk had his only major chance of the game when he fired straight at Ryzhikov from inside the 6-yard box and failed to get a shot off from the rebound. With the game running deep into stoppage time, Salomon Rondon got his head to an Oleg Kuzmin cross, nodding it goalwards and Lodygin was unable to reach it, giving Rubin a 2-1 win.

Man of the Match: Yann M'Vila
M'Vila was tidy on the ball, completing 93% of his passes, and dominant in defence. He had two shots from range, both on target, and made all of Zenit's midfield look invisible for large stretches of the first half.

Ural 2-2 CSKA: Ural contain title-holders in return to RPL

Ural have managed a 2-2 draw (the 3rd match with this score in the first matchweek) in their first match back in the Russian Premier League, holding CSKA Moscow despite the early dominance of the visitors.

CSKA lined up in their predictable 4-2-3-1 formation, but started with a double pivot of Wernbloom and Dzagoev with Honda lining up on the right flank. Ural played their own 4-2-3-1 with Serder Serderov on the right flank and Spartak Gogniev at striker. The match started somewhat predictably, with CSKA having the majority of both possession and chances and coming close through both Zuber and Love within the first 10 minutes. Ural seriously struggled to get the ball out of their half and CSKA were content to spray the ball around the park with little fear of conceding possession. Aleksandr Sapeta was particularly quiet in this period and did little to break up play of any sort. Dzagoev came close from his deeper position with nice aerial control and a half-volley from range, but Pomazan was equal to it and took it easily. CSKA finally took the lead in the 25th minute when Georgi Schennikov put a cross low into the path of an onrushing Ahmed Musa, who easily put it into the back of the net. After the goal, CSKA let off slightly, but were still more than enough to handle the poor Ural. They only managed to come close one more time before the break however, when Honda fired low to the right of the goal, missing the post by millimetres. The visitors thus went into halftime deservedly in the lead.

The Ural side that came out in the second half looked entirely different, despite only one change being made (Artur Sarkisov replacing Aleksandr Erokhin). The hosts immediately went on the front foot and capitalised on some disastrous CSKA defending to equalise just 3 minutes after half time. Zuber's attempted header backwards was too powerful and it fell to Serderov, who slotted it sideways to Spartak Gogniev. Gogniev took a shot first time, but still relied on a deflection to put it past Akinfeev and become the first player to score for seven different RPL clubs. Before long, Zuber was replaced by Rasmus Elm, with Dzagoev shifted to the left wing, but this failed to have a significant effect as Ural began to take a hold of the game in front of their home fans. They were finally rewarded for their effort and went ahead in the 77th minute as Gogniev took his second on a tap in from a low Andrei Gorbanets cross. CSKA finally turned the game back in their favour and were rewarded with an equaliser from Vagner Love on a header from a long Rasmus Elm cross. With the game level once again, CSKA pushed further forward. Pontus Wernbloom had a header cleared off the goal line. Sergei Ignashevich followed up with a strong shot from range which went narrowly over the bar and proved to be the final attempt of the match, ending it at 2-2.

Man of the Match: Spartak Gogniev
With 2 goals against the title holders in a fantastic all-round performance, Gogniev was a constant threat to Igor Akinfeev's goal by exploiting weaknesses in CSKA's defence. Excellent performance

Rostov 3-0 CSKA: Rostov decimate second-string CSKA but still fall into playoff places

Rostov put in a superb performance over a weakened CSKA Moscow side, but it was not enough to escape the relegation playoffs as Dinamo and Zenit failed to beat Volga and Amkar respectively.

Leonid Slutskiy's team selection was something of a mystery today, with large swathes of the first team missing from the 18-man squad. Igor Akinfeev was relegated to the bench in favour of Sergei Chepchugov, whilst Mario Fernandes, Sergei Ignashevich, Seydou Doumbia, Vagner Love and Keisuke Honda missed out entirely. Nonetheless, CSKA lined up in their standard 4-2-3-1, with Dzagoev sitting behind Musa while Mark Gonzalez and Pavel Mamaev took up the wide positions. Bizarrely, Georgi Schennikov and Kirill Nababkin interchanged quite frequently in the fullback positions.

CSKA seemed content to sit deep in the early stages and allow Rostov to tire themselves in attack. As a result, the hosts saw the vast majority of the possession in the first half hour, although they failed to take advantage for the most part. Rostov's attack throughout the season has relied mostly on pace, so when given time on the ball, they found it nearly impossible to break through CSKA's defence. Indeed, Rostov's opener came following one of CSKA's only attacks of the half, as Pletikosa made an excellent save before playing the ball out to Guelor Kanga Kaku, who made an excellent lobbed through ball to the onrushing Dmitri Poloz, who was able to slide his shot past Chepchugov to give the hosts a 1-0 lead in the 19th minute. At this stage, Slutskiy pushed Alan Dzagoev into a more advanced role behind the striker, rather than the deeper central midfield role that he had played up until that point. This move gave CSKA greater attacking impetus and the possession numbers mostly leveled out as the half continued. Indeed, it was Dzagoev himself who provided CSKA's most notable chance of the half as he dribbled into the Rostov box before unleashing a strong shot on goal that Pletikosa was able to parry as far as Siyanda Xulu, who was happy to clear the danger. Mere moments later, Rostov pushed down the other end and Danko Lazovic fed Kanga Kaku with an excellent through ball and the Gabon international chipped Chepchugov to put Rostov two goals to the good immediately before half time.

The interval saw no changes, although CSKA's fullbacks appeared to cease their interchange and remained locked in their natural positions: Schennikov on the left & Nababkin on the right. Dzagoev also continued in his advanced position and created a number of chances early on, most notably a lobbed pass to Ahmed Musa, who contrived to put it over the bar. However, it wasn't long before Rostov put the finishing touches on the win, when Kalachev headed home a long Lazovic cross in the 55th minute to make it 3-0 and put the game out of reach of the champions. A substitution just under 10 minutes later allowed Tomas Necid to make his first and only appearance of the season after suffering a number of injuries. His introduction also forced Ahmed Musa out to the left flank in place of the relatively static Mark Gonzalez, leading to more fluidity and interchange between CSKA's attacking band of 3. Necid didn't look like a player who had missed 12 months of play, and he did well to set up chances for both Dzagoev and Musa with his hold up play. However, despite the impressive cameo, Necid was unable to turn the tide. Xulu came close with a header late on and Jan Holenda saw a volley skew wide in the closing seconds, but the score finished 3-0 to the relegation battlers.

Man of the Match: Guelor Kanga Kaku
Constantly dangerous throughout the first half, with accurate passing and shooting that allowed him to notch up a goal and an assist.

Krylia 3-1 Rubin: So yeah, that was a thing

I want to preface this with a warning. This is less a match report and more a rant about poor refereeing because it was particularly atrocious today. Anyway, onto the actual report. Krylia beat Rubin thanks to an offside goal, a penalty and a cool finish.

Both sides started the match in their typical 4-2-3-1 formations, with Burdyev opting to pair Bibras Natkho and Yann M'Vila in Rubin's double pivot. The move looked to pay off, as the visitors looked dominant in the early stages, finding several balls in behind Krylia's defence in the opening 10 minutes. Nevertheless, Krylia rallied and managed a counter in the 11th minute, at which point Oleg Kuzmin dragged down Bruno Teles on the left side of the box to earn the visitors a free kick. What followed was one of the most dismal calls by a linesman that I have ever seen. Luis Caballero smashed the ball home after the play should have been given as offside, not once or twice, but three times! I'm not trying to take anything away from Caballero because his finish was excellent and neat, but the play should have been stopped long before he even touched the ball.  The poor officiating didn't stop there however, as Salomon Rondon was sliced down from behind in the box while the referee allowed the game to play on. At this point, Rubin would have been perfectly justified to feel hard done by, but their poor luck continued after the break.

Rubin came out on time after the break, but Krylia were several minutes behind schedule and the referees appeared even later. It only took five minutes for Krylia to earn their lead as they found a neat finish through Maksimov, who latched onto a Nemov pass and slotted it into the bottom left corner. Undeterred, Rubin pushed on and pulled a goal back from a decent finish by Dyadyun, who had been introduced for Eremenko just after the hour mark. Unfortunately, Rubin continued to struggle against the more physical Krylia, who bullied the visitors all over the park. However, they did themselves no favours in stoppage time, when Cesar Navas brought down Nemov and Maksimov simply converted it. It was very likely the first and only correct penalty call of the four shouts made during the match for both sides.

Man of the Match: The referees
They won this game for Krylia. That's all I'm going to say