Secondary intrigues: will CSKA and Rostov leave Spartak without medals, will the teams of Evseev and Yuran be saved

"Spartak" is still extremely unstable

Last week, after a home victory over Spartak, Zenit became the champion of Russia for the fifth time in a row. However, despite this, there is enough intrigue in the tournament four rounds before the finish. The first of them is the fight for silver. Like last year, the winners of the awards are likely to be determined only at the very end. Even if now medals are not a pass to European competitions, they remain a good motivation for the players. By mid-May, there were three real contenders left for them - CSKA, Rostov and Spartak, following each other with minimal margins.

The CSKA team took advantage of the misfires of competitors and for the first time since October broke into second place. The autumn take-off was replaced by a decline: in the next seven RPL matches, they won one victory, but in the winter Vladimir Fedotov did a brilliant job at the training camp, and the team scored an excellent move.

After the defeat of Sochi, she won seven victories with one draw. It is not surprising that after the resumption of the season, CSKA scored the most points along with Zenit and Lokomotiv - 22. At the same time, St. Petersburg managed to beat them, and the railway workers escaped in the end. Along the way, the red-blues reached the final of the Russian Cup.

They don't seem to have any weaknesses right now. In the center of defense, the trio played Igor Diveev - Willian Rocha - Moisés. In the attacking line, the versatile Ivan Oblyakov shows himself great, scoring five goals in all tournaments in the spring and assisting his partners the same number of times. The problematic left edge of the defense was unexpectedly closed by Jesús Medina. And in the attack, not only Fedor Chalov, but also Anton Zabolotny regularly upsets opponents. At the same time, the team copes without the help of Jorge Carrascal, to whom the headquarters gives almost no time.

But CSKA will have to prove its worth at the most difficult finish stretch. After the meeting with Torpedo, he is waiting for a derby with Spartak, an away confrontation with Krasnodar, which is traditionally difficult for the team (only two wins in 12 matches) and a key home match with Rostov.

The red-and-whites, on the contrary, have the easiest schedule for the remaining meetings of the national championship. In addition to the derby, they will have to test entirely outsiders: Khimki, Nizhny Novgorod and Krylia Sovetov. But opponents fighting for survival are clearly not going to give them points. The game with Nizhny Novgorod should be especially interesting, because they were recently headed by the former captain of the ten-time champions of the country Sergey Yuran. At the Otkritie Arena, he and his players will try to stop the venerable hosts, especially since the specialist has never conceded to them (one win and one draw). It will also be extremely difficult to travel to Samara, especially if the Wings by that time do not guarantee themselves a place in the RPL for the next season.

If we take the last matches of Spartak, they rather caused cautious optimism, because the Muscovites imposed a serious struggle on Zenit and almost prevented it from becoming a champion ahead of schedule, and also scored four points in the confrontation with Krasnodar and Rostov. On the other hand, in games with southerners, Abascal's wards almost brought their own fans to a nervous breakdown, miraculously escaping in the second halves. And it is not clear how they will appear at the finish line.

It is gratifying that Quincy Promes returned to action, converting a penalty and assisting Balde Keita in St. Petersburg. Other forwards are also in good shape: Keita and Alexander Sobolev scored nine goals in all competitions in the spring. It remains only to wait for the recovery of Georgy Dzhikiya, without which the defense resembles a passing yard.

But "Rostov" in the fight for awards looks like an outsider. Firstly, Valery Karpin's team has the most difficult calendar: Sochi, Krasnodar, Akhmat and CSKA. And they will hold only one meeting at home - with Grozny in the penultimate round. Secondly, the southerners have a short bench in comparison with their competitors. It is not surprising that against the background of high loads, one or the other team leaders are injured: Evgeny Chernov, Dmitry Poloz, Khoren Bayramyan, Alexey Mironov.

However, the same thing was said about the yellow-blue in the fall, and they continue to remain in the top 3, until recently they were the main pursuers of Zenit and even parted ways with him in peace. And in total, in the spring, Rostov suffered only two defeats - from Fakel and Lokomotiv. In addition, Mykola Komlichenko, who has already broken the league record for the number of penalties earned and scored 11 times, remains in the squad.

Well-known coach Valery Nepomniachtchi called CSKA the main contender for silver medals.

"The army team in the last matches of the RPL won seven victories with one draw. But everything will be decided at the finish line, because they are still waiting for confrontation with direct competitors Spartak and Rostov, as well as strong Krasnodar. And it's not entirely true to say that they beat only rivals inferior in the class in a successful segment, there was also a victory over Zenit, "said the interlocutor of RT.

Spartak, on the other hand, is still extremely unstable. He is able to beat the conditional Zenit, and then lose to Khimki. This is a mood team, and it does not always have enough of it at a distance. When everything goes well for Abascal's wards, they fight, and as soon as something goes wrong, problems appear. In my opinion, the red-and-whites are currently playing below their potential. As for Rostov, it will be very difficult for him at the finish line. Firstly, rivals in the RPL are increasingly taking Karpin's team seriously. Secondly, the players themselves are tired of fighting," Nepomniachtchi added.

"It is curious to see how Yevseyev and Yuran will manifest themselves"

No less interesting promises to be the struggle for survival. At the same time, in the current season, four rounds before the end, there is almost no intrigue for the two teams that will fly out of the RPL directly. The closing table of Torpedo, if it loses to CSKA on Saturday, de jure will lose its chances of salvation. The arrival of Josep Klotet on the coaching bridge did not help to perform a miracle, although the Spaniard was marked by tough disciplinary measures: he expelled the three leaders, obliged the wards to gather at the base a few days before each match and suspended his own assistant Nikolai Savichev.

It will also be hard for Khimki. Under the leadership of Andrei Talalaev, they managed to score four points in confrontations with direct competitors Krylia Sovetov and Torpedo, but then lost to Lokomotiv and Dynamo, although they gave battle to the capital's giants. However, four rounds before the end, they are six points behind even the junction zone, and ahead of them are waiting for difficult matches with Spartak and Akhmat, as well as colleagues at the bottom of the table - Ural and Nizhny Novgorod.

It is unusual to see Yekaterinburg in this company, because after the return of Viktor Goncharenko, they did not lose to anyone in the championship from September to March and created a good start. But in the spring, the team paid more attention and effort to the Russian Cup, where they reached the final of the "Way of the Regions". The coach himself admitted that his players do not always have enough energy for the RPL. As a result, five defeats in a row and a seven-match series without a win. However, Ural has a three-point gap from the junction zone, and the club should remain in the RPL, especially since it will not be necessary to meet with the giants at the finish line.

Last season, completely different tasks in the national championship were solved by Samara. However, the departure of Sergey Pinyaev and Maxim Glushenkov to Lokomotiv in the winter seriously knocked them down. After the resumption of the season, Igor Osinkin's team won only one victory in the championship and flew out of the Cup of the country. In addition, Vladimir Pisarsky, who has not yet scored for a new team in the championship, cannot return to his previous level. In addition, in the next match with Lokomotiv, he will not help his partners, since he was removed in the confrontation with Krasnodar. But after the "Wings" are waiting for key meetings with competitors: "Ural" and "Fakel".

It is most interesting to observe the fate of Nizhny Novgorod and Fakel, which are now located in the junction zone. In the end, the management of the clubs decided on another change of mentors and invited quite eminent coaches - Sergey Yuran and Vadim Evseev, respectively. The main thing is that both have experience of successfully wrestling in the basement of the RPL table. The former recently saved Khimki in the 2021/22 season in an almost hopeless situation. A colleague in 2018 helped out Amkar. Moreover, both teams won in the joints.

The chances of the Voronezh team to successfully complete the season are higher, although their schedule is more difficult. But they were stronger than Dynamo and Rostov in the last two rounds on the road and are now ready to fight Lokomotiv and Zenit. Moreover, the match in Cherkizovo will be special for Evseev - he will have to meet with the team that has become his home. But already in the 27th round, he will face the most important face-to-face duel at home with Nizhny Novgorod and Yuran.

According to Valery Nepomniachtchi, it is still extremely difficult to determine the teams that will get into the joints at the end of this season.

"Unfortunately, the fate of Torpedo and Khimki, which occupy the last places in the RPL table, is almost a foregone conclusion. They found themselves in a difficult situation. Wasn't I surprised by Talalaev's agreement to lead the Moscow region team? I think he went there on the condition that no matter how the season ends, he will stay in order to solve the problem of returning back to the elite. And it is difficult to determine the two teams that will fall into the joints. I like everyone, I don't feel antagonistic to any. But, of course, it is very curious to see how Yevseyev and Yuran will manifest themselves. It is difficult to say whether they will work as anti-crisis managers," the coach concluded.