2013--14 Season Preview Part 5: Roundup and Player Predictions

Over my past 4 articles, I have predicted the table and the performances of every RPL club over the coming season. Here is my predicted table as per those articles:

1 - Anzhi Makhachkala (Champion's League)

2 - CSKA Moscow (Champion's League)

3 - Spartak Moscow (Europa League)

4 - Zenit St. Petersburg (Europa League)

5 - Dynamo Moscow (Europa League)

6 - Kuban Krasnodar

7 - Lokomotiv Moscow

8 - Rubin Kazan

9 - Rostov

10 - Terek Grozny

11 - Krasnodar

12 - Tom Tomsk

13 - Volga Nizhny Novgorod (Relegation Playoffs)

14 - Amkar Perm (Relegation Playoffs)

15 - Krylia Sovetov Samara (Relegation)

16 - Ural Sverdlovsk Oblast (Relegation)

And now for my predicted top 10 goalscorer list:

21 - Yura Movsisyan (Spartak Moscow)

16 - Aleksandr Kokorin (Anzhi Makhachkala)

14 - Seydou Doumbia (CSKA Moscow)

12 - Felipe Caicedo (Lokomotiv Moscow)

11 - Hulk (Zenit St. Petersburg)

11 - Wanderson (Krasnodar)

10 - Aleksandr Kerzhakov (Zenit St. Petersburg)

10 - Lacina Traore (Anzhi Makhachkala)

9 - Artem Dzyuba (Rostov)

9 - Vagner Love (CSKA Moscow)

And my predicted top 10 assistant list:

11 - Vagner Love (CSKA Moscow)

9 - Tino Costa (Spartak Moscow)

9 - Balasz Dszudszak (Dynamo Moscow)

8 - Joaozinho (Krasnodar)

7 - Aleksandr Anyukov (Zenit St. Petersburg)

7 - Alan Dzagoev (CSKA Moscow)

7 - Samuel Eto'o (Anzhi Makhachkala)

6 - Marcio Abreu (Krasnodar)

6 - Zhano Ananidze (Rostov)

6 - Blagoy Georgiev (Amkar Perm)

So there you have it, my predictions for table finishes, top scorers and top assistants. Feel free to let me know your own predictions in the comments. I'd love to hear them

2013-14 Season Preview Part 4 - The Relegation Battlers

Amkar Perm

Transfers In:

Petar Zanev
Nikolai Fadeev (loan)
Dmitri Kayumov (loan)

Transfers Out:

Georgi Dzhioev
Vadim Gagloev
Vitali Grishin
Maksim Lauk
Stanislav Matyash
Nikola Mijailovic
Alexei Popov
Makhmadnaim Sharifi
Vladislav Shustov
Pavel Shuvalov
Sergei Volkov

Amkar have seen a mass exodus over the summer, to the point where they appear to not only lack quality, but depth as well. I can't see them improving on last year and they'll likely drop into the playoff places, finishing in 14th.
Last Season - 11th
Prediction - 14th

Volga Nizhny Novgorod

Transfers In:

Artem Danilenko
Denis Kolodin
Mikhail Komarov
Roman Kontsedalov
Marcin Kowalczyk
Leandro
Jorge Luis Luna
Mukendi Mulumba
Artur Nigmatullin
Piotr Polczak
Luton Shelton
Dmitri Sychev

Transfers Out:

Ruslan Adzhindzhal
Dmitri Aydov
Romeo Castelen
Aleksandr Kharitonov
Dmitri Kudryashov
Aleksandr Salugin
Alexey Sapogov

Volga have strengthened over the offseason, particularly with the signings of Leandro and Denis Kolodin, however they will struggle to overcome sides such as Rostov and Terek and will slip into the playoffs. However, expect them to have a few impressive moments where they perform well against better sides, despite a 13th place finish.
Last Season - 12th
Prediction - 13th

Krylia Sovetov Samara

Transfers In:

Ruslan Adzhindzhal
Gia Grigalava

Transfers Out:

Roman Grigoryan
Steeve Joseph-Reinette
Shamil Lakhiyalov
Dmitri Golubev (loan)
Viktor Svezhov (loan)

For me, Krylia haven't done enough in the transfer window to improve their side. I expect them to collapse throughout the final months of the season and sink to their first relegation in the RPL era by finishing in 15th.
Last Season - 14th
Prediction - 15th

Ural Sverdlovsk Oblast

Transfers In:

Aleksandr Belozerov
Andrei Gorbanets
Yuri Kirillov
Gudzha Rukhaia
Artur Sarkisov
Aleksei Solosin
Evgenni Pomazan (loan)
Serder Serderov (loan)

Transfers Out:

Mikhail Biryukov
Ivan Drannikov
Anton Kobyalko
Aleksandr Kotlyarov
Aleksandr Marenich
Adessoye Oyewole
Aleksei Revyakin
Dmitri Ryzhov
Konstantin Skrylnikov
Artem Solovyei
Maksim Volkov
Dmitri Yashin
Ivan Melnik (loan)

In releasing and selling most of the core of their title winning squad, Ural have greatly weakened themselves. They have brought in a few quality replacements, but their squad lacks consistency from last year and it will take time for the team to learn to work together. I fully expect their season to be hindered by a slow start, but they will finally pick up form as the season goes on. However, it will not be enough, and they should be relegated at the first time of asking by finishing 16th.
Last Season - 1st (National Football League)
Prediction - 16th

In the final part, I will wrap up the predicted table and make predictions for top scorers and assistants.

2013-14 Season Preview Part 3 - The Mid-Table Candidates

Krasnodar

Transfers In:

Ruslan Bolov
Yuri Gazinsky
Gerard Gohou
Artur Jedrzejczyk
Vitali Kaleshin
Ricardo Laborde
Artem Leonov
Marcos Pizzelli

Transfers Out:

Aleksandr Erokhin
Evgenni Gorodov
Vladislav Ignatiev
Nukri Revishvili
Moussa Konate (loan)
Igor Lambarschi (loan)

Krasnodar are another team that has managed to weaken itself over the summer. I'm still not sold on Aleksandr Filtsov as a starting keeper and so the loss of Nukri Revishvili could be a blow to the team's ambitions. Admittedly, Krasnodar have an impressive frontline, including Wanderson and Joaozinho, but I don't believe that this will be enough to overcome the team's overly unimpressive defence. I don't predict that Krasnodar will be openly bad, but they won't impress anyone either, finishing 11th.
Last Season - 10th
Prediction - 11th

Terek Grozny

Transfers In:

Evgenni Gorodov
Evgenni Kobozev
Ivan Temnikov (loan)

Transfers Out:

Musawengosi Mguni
Piotr Polczak
Adlan Katsaev (loan)
Ezechiel N'Douassel (loan)

Terek have not had a particularly poor transfer window, but they haven't managed a particularly good one either. I'm left feeling that this Terek squad will be of roughly the same quality as the one that finished 8th last season, but with Lokomotiv and Rostov both strengthening, we'll see Terek dropping two places to 10th.
Last Season - 8th
Prediction - 10th

Rostov

Transfers In:

Kamil Agalarov
Anton Amelchenko
Bastos
Yoo Byung-Soo
Azim Fatullaev
Igor Lolo
Hrvoje Milic
Zhano Ananidze (loan)
Artem Dzyuba (loan)
Igor Khudobyak (loan)

Transfers Out:

Inal Getigezhev
Isaac Okoronkwo
Andrei Vasiliev (loan)

This Rostov side is a far cry from the one that limped into 12th last season. After undergoing what could be seen as a squad overhaul over the summer, Rostov may have emerged as the surprise package of the 2013-14 season. In addition to impressive permanent moves, Rostov have also brought in two top class performers, Zhano Ananidze and Artem Dzyuba, on loan from Spartak Moscow. I'm tentatively predicting that Rostov will finish in 9th, but don't be surprised to see them scalping a few top 6 sides over the season.
Last Season - 13th
Prediction - 9th

Tom Tomsk

Transfers In:

Mladen Bozovic
Andrei Ivanov
Zhivko Milanov
Gabriel Muresan
Kirill Panchenko
Evgenni Sidorenko
Pavel Ignatovich (loan)
Mikhail Komkov (loan)
Igor Portnyagin (loan)
Vladimir Rykov (loan)

Transfers Out:

Vitali Astakhov
Aleksandr Dimidko
Andrei Gorbanets
Anton Khazov
Viktor Stroev

A club that has strengthened even better than Rostov, Tom Tomsk have brought in a number of RPL veterans and talented players on loans. Despite falling short of the National Football League title last season, Tom Tomsk have improved the squad far better than the other promoted side, Ural, and I predict them to clear the playoff places by finishing 12th.
Last Season - 2nd (National Football League)
Prediction - 12th

2013-14 Season Preview Part 2 - The Europa League Hopefuls

Kuban Krasnodar

Transfers In:

Nikita Bezlikhotnov
Djibril Cisse
Vladislav Ignatiev

Transfers Out:

Dele Adeleye
Abdulwaheed Afolabi
Aleksei Ionov
Vladislav Kulik
Igor Lolo
Daniel Niculae
Marcos Pizzelli
Nikolai Zhilyaev
Bauyrzhan Islamkhanov (loan)
Mikhail Komkov (loan)

In my opinion Kuban have greatly weakened their side with the departures of Ionov, Kulik and Lolo, and have not done enough to replace them. Djibril Cisse could be an improvement at striker, but weaknesses over the rest of the pitch will have dropped the overall quality of their squad and I predict them to drop 1 place in the table, although they could do worse if their competitors
Last Season - 5th
Prediction - 6th

Rubin Kazan

Transfers In:

Inal Getigezhev
Vladislav Kulik
Aleksandr Prudnikov

Transfers Out:

Aleksei Eremenko
Vitali Kaleshin
Pablo Orbaiz
Sergei Davydov (loan)
Alan Kasaev (loan)
Igor Portnyagin (loan)
Ivan Temnikov (loan)
Gokhan Tore (loan)
Maksim Zhestokov (loan

In my opinion, Rubin have significantly decreased in quality throughout the midfield by allowing Eremenko and Orbaiz to depart, while their depth on the wings has evaporated with the decision to loan out Gokhan Tore and Alan Kasaev. By failing to cover these departures, Rubin will sink ever further away from the title and I predict that they will miss out on Europa League qualification by finishing 8th.
Last Season - 6th
Prediction - 8th

Dynamo Moscow

Transfers In:

George Florescu
Alan Kasaev (loan)

Transfers Out:

Tomislav Dujmovic
Yuri Kirillov
Vladimir Kisenkov
Aleksandr Kokorin
Denis Kolodin
Evgenni Puzin
Ivan Solovyov
Vladimir Rykov (loan)

Dynamo have significantly weakened with the sale of Aleksandr Kokorin to Anzhi, but have managed to cover their departures far better than their direct rivals. The return of Andrei Voronin from a loan to Fortuna should do enough to cover weaknesses up front and Dynamo should be able to capitalise on the weaknesses of Rubin and Kuban to finish 5th.
Last Season - 7th
Prediction - 5th

Lokomotiv Moscow

Transfers In:

Taras Mykhalyk
Sergei Tkachyov

Transfers Out:

Anton Amelchenko
Denis Glushakov
Dmitri Loskov
Artur Sarkisov
Dmitri Sychev

The biggest move that Lokomotiv have made over the summer was the replacement of manager Slaven Bilic with Leonid Kuchuk. Bilic's tactics and team selections were baffling at times and he dragged Lokomotiv down to a 9th place finish when they were expected to be pushing for Champion's League places. As for players, Lokomotiv have slightly weakened by replacing Denis Glushakov with Taras Mykhalyk, however the improved management of Leonid Kuchuk should pull them to a 7th place finish.
Last Season - 9th
Prediction - 7th

2013-14 Season Preview Part 1 - The Title Challengers

So with the RPL season kicking off this weekend, I thought I'd go ahead and give a brief overview of each squad, what they've achieved in the offseason and where I think they'll finish this season. First up is the title challengers.

CSKA Moscow

Transfers In:

Georgi Milanov
Steven Zuber

Transfers Out:

Uros Cosic
Artur Nigmatullin
Petr Ten (loan)

CSKA have not done much to strengthen over the summer, with Leonid Slutsky obviously content with most areas of his squad. However, he has brought in Georgi Milanov and Steven Zuber to fill out the midfield depth chart in preparation for the departure of Keisuke Honda, who is expected to leave for Milan in the immediate future. For me, they haven't done enough to cover for the increasing age of their central defence and will see problems as Sergei Ignashevich's age finally begins to catch up with him.
Last Season - 1st
Prediction - 2nd

Zenit St. Petersburg

Transfers In:

Andrei Arshavin
Yuri Lodygin
Ivan Solovyov
Anatoliy Tymoschuk

Transfers Out:

Bruno Alves
Igor Cheminava
Igor Denisov
Mikhail Kerzhakov
Sergei Semak

Zenit have seen a large decrease in quality throughout the spine of their squad over the offseason. The departure of Igor Denisov to a direct rival will greatly harm the team's chances of challenging for the title, despite the return of Andrei Arshavin and Anatoliy Tymoschuk to the club. The centre of midfield in particular has seen a depth problem arise and I don't really think that they'll get going through the middle of the season, so I predict them to finish 4th.
Last Season - 2nd
Prediction - 4th

Anzhi Makhachkala

Transfers In:

Igor Denisov
Aleksei Ionov
Mikhail Kerzhakov
Aleksandr Kokorin
Christopher Samba

Transfers Out:

Kamil Agalarov
Nikita Burmistrov (loan)
Evgenni Pomazan (loan)
Serder Serderov (loan)

Anzhi have greatly strengthened the centre of their midfield at the cost of one of their closest rivals, Zenit, and have also improved their defence with the return of Christopher Samba. While defence may still be an issue due to weakness at fullback, Anzhi's attack should more than overcome any defensive frailties and for that reason, I expect them to finally take the title.
Last Season - 3rd
Prediction - 1st

Spartak Moscow

Transfers In:

Tino Costa
Denis Glushakov
Jose Manuel Jurado

Transfers Out:

Demy de Zeeuw
Igor Gorbatenko
Zhano Ananidze (loan)
Artem Dzyuba (loan)
Nikolai Fadeev (loan)
Dmitri Kayumov (loan)

Spartak have had a huge offseason, greatly strengthening the centre of the pitch by replacing Demy de Zeeuw and Ognen Vukjevic with Denis Glushakov and Tino Costa, as well as the return of Jose Manuel Jurado. A hopeful return to fitness of Sergei Parshivlyuk and Romulo could catapult Spartak to the title, but that may be too optimistic, so I'll predict them to finish in 3rd, close behind CSKA.
Last Season - 4th
Prediction - 3rd

Next up is the preview of the Europa League hopefuls - Kuban, Rubin, Dinamo and Lokomotiv.

Rumour Roundup: July 10th, 2013

It's been a big week for RPL transfers, so this is a somewhat longer Rumour Roundup than usual.

Done Deals:
Aleksandr Kokorin has completed his €19 million move from Dynamo to Anzhi. He joins a stacked frontline that also includes Samuel Eto'o and Lacina Traore and is supported by Yuri Zhirkov and Willian. This move will hopefully put an end to rumours about strikers going to Anzhi, but maybe I'm being a bit too optimistic.

Djibril Cisse has joined Kuban Krasnodar on a free transfer, having last played for Al-Gharafa on loan from Queen's Park Rangers. The former Liverpool striker has been out of form since leaving Panathinaikos in 2011 and will hope to reboot his career in order to break into the French national team.

Demy de Zeeuw has sealed his permanent transfer from Spartak Moscow to Belgian side Anderlecht. de Zeeuw played for Anderlecht on loan in the second half of last season, making six appearances, and is believed to be coming to the club for free.

Spartak's Zhano Ananidze has joined Rostov on loan for the entirety of the 2013-14 RPL season, where he will join fellow Spartak loanee Artem Dzyuba. Ananidze made his Spartak debut back in 2009, becoming the youngest ever player in the RPL, following up by becoming the youngest ever scorer in the competition just under 3 weeks later.

Nicolas Pareja has joined Sevilla on loan due to a lack of playing time at Spartak. Since Valery Karpin has resumed control of Spartak, Pareja has found it hard to beat out players such as Marek Suchy, Juan Insuarralde and Salvatore Bocchetti for a position in the centre of defence. He will reunite with Unai Emery at Sevilla, as Emery is known to rate Pareja and will likely give the defender playing time.

Looking Likely:
Norwich City have made an offer for Lokomotiv's Senegalese forward Dame N'Doye in the region of €7 million. Chris Hughton is believed to want a striker to partner new signing Ricky van Wolfswinkel at striker and has been given extra funds due to the Premier League's new broadcast deal. Lokomotiv's asking price is believed to be in the region of €11.5 million.

50/50:
Luis Neto has left his Zenit future up in the air after refusing to rule out a move away from the St. Petersburg club. Having been linked heavily with Inter Milan, the Portuguese defender is thought to be valued by his club at around €12 million and is not expected to leave unless an offer in this region is made.

Leonid Slustky has declared that CSKA has yet to receive a concrete offer for Keisuke Honda's transfer. Having been heavily linked with a move to AC Milan, Honda was expected to leave the club in the coming days, however the move looks to have been stalled until Milan make a substantial offer for the Japanese midfielder's services.

Anzhi have been linked with wantaway Manchester United winger Nani, who has also been linked with Tottenham, Roma and Galatasaray. Nani has struggled for playing time behind the likes of Wayne Rooney, Shinji Kagawa and Antonio Valencia and seems willing to leave the club for more regular starts. United's asking price is believed to be in the region of €14 million and former United coach Rene Muelensteen could be key in bringing the Portuguese winger to Anzhi.

Low Chance:
Hulk has stated that he is happy to stay Zenit if no offer comes in from a "better team in a better competition". Hulk has been linked with both Chelsea and Tottenham for more than a year, but both teams appear to have cooled off their interest in recent weeks after the Brazilian had a poor season by his standards.

Salomon Rondon has denied that a move to Manchester City is in the works, claiming that he "has no formal knowledge" about Manuel Pellegrini's reported interest. Pellegrini is believed to want Rondon at City to replace recent departure Carlos Tevez, who has just joined Juventus.

Rumour Roundup: July 3rd, 2013

A few highly touted moves have either been completed in the last week or look set to be completed in the coming days, along with a few moves that have come out of nowhere. Let's take a look.

Done Deals:
Andrei Arshavin has finally rejoined Zenit on a free transfer. He made 308 appearances for the club between 2000 and 2009, scoring 75 goals before leaving to join Arsenal. His time in London was marked with inconsistency, eventually scoring 31 goals, including 4 in a 4-4 draw with Liverpool, in 143 appearances. He rejoined Zenit on loan in 2012, but the club opted to wait until his contract expired before making a permanent move for the former Russia captain.

Christopher Samba has rejoined Anzhi just 6 months after leaving them to join Queen's Park Rangers. Anzhi chairman Souleymane Kerimov claimed that "[Samba] expressed interest...Plus, the guys asked for him". It is believed that Anzhi made a profit in the region of €3.4 million, having sold Samba for €15 million and repurchased him for €11.6 million.

Spartak forward Artem Dzyuba has joined Rostov on loan for a season. Dzyuba had struggled for form in the tail end of last season and had found himself falling behind Ari and Waris in the pecking order for the crucial second striker role, so this move could improve his chances at Spartak when he returns or find him a suitor elsewhere.

Looking Likely:
Keisuke Honda is believed to have agreed personal terms with AC Milan, although this has yet to be confirmed by the player, Milan or his current club, CSKA Moscow. Honda's current deal expires in December and he has indicated that his time in Moscow has come to an end.

Aleksandr Kokorin has told Dynamo's board that he wishes to join Anzhi to further his career, although financial motives are suspected. Anzhi are apparently willing to pay Kokorin's €19 million release clause, meaning a move should be completed within the next few days.

50/50:
Ari's time at Spartak looks to be nearing an end as he has been told that he will train and play with the club's reserve team until his contract expires in December, unless a team is willing to purchase him beforehand. This is the second move in as many days that indicates that Spartak is looking to completely reshape its strikeforce.

Spartak central defender Nicolas Pareja is reportedly edging towards a move to Sevilla, where he will reunite with former Spartak manager Unai Emery. Since Emery left the club, Pareja has struggled to get starts ahead of Juan Manuel Insuarralde and Marek Suchy, so this move could be a chance to get playing time for Pareja under a manager who rates him.

Dynamo defender Gordon Schildenfeld is looking to move away from Moscow and his agent has claimed that a number of English clubs are interested in his client. Schildenfeld has fallen out of favour at Dinamo and spent last season on loan at Greek side PAOK Salonika.

Low Chance:
Anzhi look set to miss out on Vitesse striker Wilfried Bony after Swansea reportedly had a €12 million offer accepted by the Dutch club. Bony has scored 52 goals in 71 games at Vitesse, including 37 in 36 this season.