There are only two and a half weeks left until the start of the Champions League group stage, and on October 7, participants in this stage will have to submit their final applications for the tournament.
The clubs have very little time left to strengthen with new players and complete the set.
Among the Russian teams, Lokomotiv is preparing the most actively for the European Cup season, having invited two well-known performers for the Russian Premier League fans.
On Sunday it became known that Russian national team midfielder Daler Kuzyaev may join Marko Nikolic's team.
According to Sport-Express, the former Zenit player has already signed a three-year contract with the railroad, which has not yet been officially announced.
Kuzyaev came to Lokomotiv in the status of a free agent after he ended an agreement with the St. Petersburg club.
Kuzyaev can be called one of the most popular defensive midfielders in Russia.
Even without a club, he continued to be called up to the national team and entered the field in two Nations League games, having managed to make an assist in a meeting with Hungary.
The fact that he was in limbo for a long time and missed a third of the season in the RPL was explained by the desire to continue his career abroad.
But a suitable option was never found, and Kuzyaev remained in Russia.
Lokomotiv badly needed a high-quality defensive player after Dmitry Barinov was seriously injured.
Marko Nikolic in the current situation was left with only three players who could play in this zone: Grzegorz Krychowiak, Stanislav Magkeev and Daniil Kulikov.
So far, their efforts are enough to make Muscovites feel comfortable in Russian conditions.
Under Nikolic, Lokomotiv played 19 matches, in which they suffered only three defeats and conceded 13 goals.
Ten times during this time, the goal of Marinato Guilherme remained intact, and the high-quality play of the defenders greatly influenced this.
But in the Champions League, Lokomotiv will have to face off against Bayern Munich, Atletico Madrid and Salzburg, Austria, and this is a completely different level of opposition.
Kuzyaev has experience of playing in European competitions, albeit not the most successful one - a year ago, due to a bust of yellow cards, he could not even play all the group stage matches with Zenit.
Still, his arrival should have a positive effect on the defensive qualities of Lokomotiv and also add some variability in the attack - Kuzyaev can also be useful in this direction.
And in the long term, the club will only benefit from strong competition in the support zone.
While much has been said about Kuzyaev's arrival at Lokomotiv in recent days, the reports about the transfer of striker Ze Luis were rather unexpected.
According to Sport-Express, he also agreed on the terms of a three-year contract and will sign it in the near future.
Now the forward, who played four years at Spartak, represents Porto, with which he has an agreement until 2023.
For the Russian championship, the return of Ze Luis could be a big plus.
It is enough to remember how much Spartak lost after his departure.
Although the performance of the Cape Verdian was not always exemplary, Ze Luis tried to hit as often as possible and created chances for the red and white that could be used not only by himself, but also by one of his partners.
In addition, he knows how to play on the second floor and has good dribbling.
Lokomotiv needs such a versatile player to build an attacking game.
Now the "railroad" is not doing well in the attack.
With the departure of Alexei Miranchuk, Muscovites manage to score no more than two goals per match, even in meetings with RPL outsiders.
Ze Luis is well aware of the peculiarities of the Russian championship and should immediately join the team.
Whether he will be just as useful in the Champions League is hard to say.
But as a partner for Fyodor Smolov and Eder's rival, the Cape Verdean national team player should come in handy.
Do not forget that in Portugal Ze Luís scored ten goals and gave two assists, which is already quite a good statistic for a striker.
In addition to Ze Luis, Lokomotiv has already invited the young Belarusian striker Vitaly Lisakovich, who has begun to justify the costs of the transfer from Shakhtar Salihorsk.
In the last match against Khimki, he first appeared in the starting lineup and scored his debut goal.
Previously, Lisakovich scored an assist in a lost meeting with Akhmat.
At the same time, Lokomotiv has not yet closed the deal for Mario Mandzhukich, the contract with which was agreed upon back in September.
According to the Telegram channel Mutko against, the ex-player of Juventus and the vice-champion of the world at the last moment demanded to increase his salary to € 10 million in two years, with which the club categorically disagreed.
Because of this, the likelihood of the arrival of such an eminent striker, especially after agreeing on a contract with Ze Luis, has become very low.
But just such a player, with vast experience in the Champions League, would be useful to Muscovites specifically for this tournament.
Lokomotiv head coach Marko Nikolic expects that the team will strengthen with new players before the transfer window closes, however, he did not confirm the information about the imminent transfer of Daler Kuzyaev and Ze Luis, TASS reports.