CSKA (Moscow)
The calendar
14.10 Rubin d
21.10 Amkar g
25.10 Moscow d
28.10 Rostov g
05.11 Zenit D
08.11 Wings of the Soviets g
18.11 Ray-Energy g
26.11 Dynamo d
The rest of the championship for CSKA is not difficult to call. If the army team will also regularly beat the middle peasants, even participation in the Champions League should not hurt them much. Serious rivals of the army are only “Zenith” and “Ray-Energy”, which will fly to Vladivostok.
At the same time, CSKA will need to play in the Champions League against Arsenal and Porto, and spectacular losses are possible during this period.
Tactics
The optimal composition (3-5-2):
Akinfeev - V. Berezutsky, Ignashevich, A. Berezutsky - Rakhimich, Aldonin, Krasic, Carvalho, Zhirkov - Jo, Olic.
The advantage of CSKA is the simulated basic combination of players, which Gazzaev revises only in the unimportant cup games, and there will be no such games this year. But there is a serious flaw in this power: it seems that the head coach is not ready for the deep evolution of the roster, and CSKA will definitely need refreshment of the game in the spring stage of the European competition when its European competitors gain optimal strength.
DEFENSE. This year CSKA lost a lot with an injury to Odia - the right flank was the strongest link in the lineup that won the UEFA Cup and the Russian championship. Perhaps the return of the Nigerian will make the game more reliable. But such an option for CSKA headquarters is Plan B. Krasic on the right flank seems to Gazzaev a sharper player, and the army coach no longer agrees to a smaller one.
SEMI-PROTECTION. In the 3-5-2 scheme, the midfielders should work out on the entire flank and play a lot in the selection, but Zhirkov and Krasic are not able to defend the whole game without prejudice to the attack. Carvalho remained a CSKA playmaker only nominally; in fact, he has long been the third striker, at least in the Russian championship. Balls for forwards began to be delivered by flanking players and oporniks, in the attack of CSKA Moscow there were more balls won in the fight.
ATTACK. Jo is a key figure in CSKA. He went on a forced sick leave as a leading scorer, and returned as a leading transit player through whom the entire game is built.
Game tone
The mood of the team depends on four Brazilians who suffer from a split personality this season. Their true strength can only be seen in the Champions League and in matches for Celesao, and in the Russian championship they play sluggishly and reluctantly. Gazzaev can only rely on the force of inertia with which CSKA is heading for the championship. To a lesser extent, this applies to Jo, whom Dunga is in no hurry to call for training, but the top scorer of the Russian championship only returns after an injury.
Cold war
It is unleashed precisely against the army team. In response to competitor bookmaker analytics, Evgeny Giner posted an open letter with a rebuke in leading sports newspapers. “After each victory of PFC CSKA, some players of the teams applying for the championship medal, organize hysteria in the press, provoking fans and just football fans,” said the president of CSKA. - Some, it turns out, even before the match they knew that CSKA would win. Another was enough already that the meeting was not served by a foreign arbiter ... It comes to the point that we are almost forced to make excuses for our victories. But this will not happen. We will not justify ourselves to anyone. As well as we will not arrange tantrums about each result of the teams applying for medals. Because neither football players nor PFC CSKA coaches participate in bookmaking games. ”
Domestic championship
This season, CSKA has the worst results in recent years against other clubs of the Big Four. Even if the team manages to defeat Zenit, in the end it will be miserable (compared to the 2003–2005 seasons) 6 points in games with the elite. In previous seasons, CSKA scored the same number of points in meetings with Spartak alone. In addition, if we compare the successes of other Quartet clubs in games with each other, it turns out that CSKA lost the most points in these matches (12 points). If Spartak has suffered from a chronic inability to defeat CSKA for several years, then Lokomotiv has become such an uncomfortable rival for the army.
Favorite
Valery Gazzaev:
“Today is April Fool’s Day, still no one will believe that we have not beaten Spartak” (after a draw with Spartak on April 1).
“If Spartak traditionally loses to Bayern - 0: 4 and 1: 5, this does not mean the traditions of all Russian football.”
“Today I was twice as difficult because I played against two foreign experts”
(about the presence of Hiddink at the match against Zenit).
Forecast PROSPORT: 1 place
Lokomotiv (Moscow)
The calendar
14.10 Moscow d
22.10 Zenith G
25.10 Torpedo d
29.10 Dynamo g
05.11 Shinnik d
11.11 Tom g
18.11 Amkar g
26.11 Rostov d
The Loko calendar does not look murderous, but it is not as light as it might seem at first glance. Lokomotiv will have to play with potential “drowned” - “Torpedo”, “Dynamo”, “Amkar” and “Shinnik”. In addition to meetings with super-motivated outsiders, Lokomotiv also expects fights with Moscow and Tomyu, who are hoping to get into the Cup following the championship
UEFA But the main thing still looks the match against Zenit in St. Petersburg, in which the two most successful foreign coaches of the 2006 season compete.
Tactics
The optimal composition (4-4-2): Polyakov - Spakhich, Asatiani, Ivanovich, Fininho - Izmailov, Gurenko, Loskov, Bilyaletdinov - Sychev, Traore
Muslin initially stated that he planned to play three forwards, but now he prefers to let two out on the field. Although this is enough for fans who are not spoiled by a bright game under Eshtrekov. Muslin did not immediately find the optimal scheme, but in the end there was a place in it for Izmailov, who had been ill for half a season, and Loskov, the best team reseller.
DEFENSE. The Loko defense line gained reliability after Asatiani returned to service, and after the purchase of Fininho, the protection of Lokomotiv looks fully equipped. Muslin has a worthy replacement for every defense position.
SEMI-PROTECTION. The most stable line is Loko. The only midfield position that needs to be strengthened is a defensive midfielder. Despite the fact that Gurenko is efficient, efficient and unyielding, he, originally an extreme defender, needs a worthy substitution at the age of 34.
ATTACK. For the first time, Lokomotiv has no shortage of forwards. There are four in the team, and only Sychev has a stable place in the composition. The author of 18 goals in the first division Asildarov has not yet become accustomed to the team, and Muslin so far prefers O'Connor and Traore to him.
Game tone
Despite the long win-win series, which reached 17 matches for the match against Rubin, Lokomotiv still had old problems and new problems before the final segment of the championship. The main of the newfound difficulties is Asatiani's injury, which, after a hard junction with Olic, dropped out for about a month. Not everything is smooth in the attack either - Loko’s dependence on a pair of Loskov - Sychev is still very large. And if Loskov spends one of his best seasons in his career, then Sychev scores too little for the leading striker of the team claiming to be the champion.
Cold war
It is noteworthy that the first statement this year that CSKA is often helped by judges was made not by Spartak representatives or even the talkative Vlastimil Petrzhela, but by Lokomotiv head coach Slavolyub Muslin. At a press conference on April 16 after the first victory over CSKA, the Serb said: “I do not think that CSKA representatives should express dissatisfaction with the refereeing of today's match. Because we all know how CSKA is usually judged. ” Of the Lokomotiv players, the “strange” match “Tom” - CSKA was commented only by Dmitry Loskov: “Even before the match, I was sure that CSKA would win. Just don't ask why. "
Domestic championship
Lokomotiv is the most successful match this year with clubs from the Big Four. 10 points out of 15 possible - with this result, Loko approached the match against Zenit, which will be the last meeting for Loko this year with a direct competitor in the fight for getting into the Champions League. Loko has developed a rare immunity to defeats from CSKA for our championship: CSKA have not been able to beat the railway workers for three years. Lokomotiv is the only team this year that managed to beat CSKA twice, and Loko managed to hit Akinfeev’s goal five times in two matches. Only with Spartak did Muslin's team have a negative balance of meetings this year - defeat and draw.
Favorite
Slavolyub Muslin:
“I, like other coaches, have complaints against the referees. We just do not consider it necessary to fan the scandals. The topic of refereeing is the only football issue that leaves me indifferent.
I think we will find out the name of the champion only in the last round. ”
Forecast PROSPORT: 2 place
"ZENITH"
(St. Petersburg)
The calendar
14.10 Spartak (M) g
22.10 Lokomotiv d
25.10 Ruby g
29.10 Moscow d
05.11 CSKA g
08.11 Torpedo g
18.11 Shinnik g
26.11 Tom D
Zenit has the most intense calendar in the remaining rounds: the striking segment is Spartak, Lokomotiv, Rubin, Moscow and CSKA. In fact, the fate of Zenit medals will be decided in matches with direct competitors.
Tactics
The optimal composition (4-4-2): Malafeev - Anyukov, Skrtel, Hagen, Kim Tong Jin - Riksen, Radimov, Li Ho, Denisov - Arshavin, Tekke.
Dick Advocaat is committed to the classic Dutch 4-3-3 system. However, the selection of players that Lawyer found in St. Petersburg leaves the 4-4-2 scheme familiar to Petrogel Zenit viable.
GOALKEEPER. The lawyer prefers Malafeev. Evil tongues say that Malafeev will play while Konstantin Sarsania remains the sports director.
PROTECTION. The right-back is traditionally played by Alexander Anyukov, with whom Fernando Riksen is hypothetically competing. Central advocates Advocate sees Martin Skrtel and Eric Hagen. The left flank is firmly fixed to the Korean protege coach Kim Tong Jin, who is reliable in defense and practically does not participate in attacks.
SEMI-PROTECTION. Of the three defensive midfielders that the Lawyer wants to see on the field, for sure we can talk about three: a place on the field of Radimov, Riksen is not discussed. In addition to them, depending on their readiness, Li Ho, Denisov and Shirl can play.
ATTACK. The line in which competition is sharpened to the limit. A place at the base is guaranteed only to Arshavin and Tekke.
Game tone
Zenit is experiencing a creative upsurge: after the spring torment, when the team in four matches issued a series of 4 defeats with a total difference of 11–2, and the team’s total restructuring finally began to appear results. Game stability is associated with the current mood of the team. Petersburg fans were delighted when Zenit football players stood in a home match against Samara Wings, embracing in a circle before the match, after the match, and after a goal. Such a “Zenith” has never been seen. For two months, the lawyer managed to achieve the same bonus for all 18 players who fall into the main team. Therefore, the adaptation of the many newcomers of Zenit was so swift. The same Tekke, about which the gossip is still unbearable, has successfully adapted and partly because it scores in almost every match.
The only negative is associated with Alexander Kerzhakov. His active desire to leave Zenit in the summer and the apparent reluctance of the club's owners to sell it led to the fact that Kerzhakov stopped showing the game that was shown on tapes to Dick Advocaat, the matchmaker of that in St. Petersburg. Finally, Kerzhakov, perhaps the most famous aerophobe of the Russian championship, did not fly to Vladivostok: the formal version is a hip injury, which, however, Kerzhakov did not complain at all during and after the Cup match with Chita.
Cold war
Zenit somehow quietly lost its reputation as the most talkative team. The last of the “Zenith” who annealed on the press this year was Vlastimil Petrzhela, who gave two interviews a week during his trench war with the new owner of the club.
In this informational context, the players of the St. Petersburg club decided to hold their mouths until the situation with the head coach becomes clear; then a break for the World Cup, and then Zenit was headed by Dick Advocaat, who himself prefers formalized and minimized communication with the press. Only Arshavin, who, compared to previous years, was literally numb, was noted in the swara, which flared up after the match “Tom” - CSKA: “CSKA left on the edge after this round. It seems that they are not so far away, but this impression is misleading. In addition, as I heard, this year foreign referees will not judge the matches of the Russian championship anymore. I think this gives the army team an additional advantage. "
Favorite
Dick Lawyer:
“When I was in school, I knew that Russia is very, very, very big. But I didn’t imagine that so much ”(before the match in Vladivostok).
Domestic championship
In games with its closest competitors, Zenit scored just one point. The game with Spartak on Petrovsky on April 30 was the last home for Vlastimil Petrzhela, who was dismissed on May 3. “Zenit” then opened the account, and then was humiliated: the final score 4: 1 - an anti-record for St. Petersburg, where the wording “you can fail the season, but“ Spartak “must be beaten” is still relevant. Immediately after this, “Zenith” under the leadership of Vladimir Borovichki met in “Cherkizovo” with “Locomotive”. In that match, everything was decided by the 10th minute - at first Traore, and then Sychev once again witnessed the crisis in which the St. Petersburg club was at that time. It was rumored that the "Czech Legion" in that match fused Vladimir Borovichka.
Forecast PROSPORT: 3 place
"Spartak Moscow)
The calendar
14.10 Zenit D
21.10 Torpedo g
25.10 Dynamo d
28.10 Shinnik g
05.11 Tom D
08.11 Saturn g
11.11 Rostov g
November 26, Wings of the Soviets
“Nobody would even ask Sergei Pavlov about whether this game (with Luch-Energia in Vladivostok on August 19th - PROsport) can be made home for us. But Alexander Starkov said: no, they say, I need home matches at the start of the championship. And he didn’t want to make any concessions. And the last three rounds away? They also explained to him how bad this was for the team, and again to no avail. As if he felt that he would not be working at Spartak by that time! (Vladimir Fedotov, head coach)
Tactics
The optimal composition (4-2-3-1):
Kowalewski - Jiranek, Zheder, Strantzl, Shishkin - Kovach, Mozart - Kalinichenko, Titov, Boyarintsev - Pavlyuchenko.
A series of intense matches of recent weeks finally dispelled Vladimir Fedotov’s illusion that Spartak was ready to play three defenders. The tight schedule of matches allows Fedotov to experiment only in the front line, and the wealth of options is grouped around three basic schemes: with one forward, two and without a single one, as it was at the end of the game with Sporting.
DEFENSE. In the summer, the Argentinean Rodriguez, a non-alternative owner of the left corner of the defense, was picking up Fedotov’s whists. The coach ceased to admire him only after Munich. Having no time to invent a reliable insurance of Argentinean jerks forward, Fedotov turned Shishkin into the main left back of the young station wagon in the game with Sporting. With Zheder, there was more order before the penalty, although the Brazilian is still shy: often passes back to Kowalewski.
SEMI-PROTECTION. Egor Titov is the only midfielder playing without failures. In the autumn schedule of the games “two days later on the third”, even hardy Mozart and Kovacs gave a slack. But on the rise, he saved up energy on the Boyarintsev bench, and on the way, he yearned for Kalinichenko’s field.
ATTACK. Vladimir Fedotov was playing a couple of Cavenagi - Pavlyuchenko for the Champions League, however, playing the Argentine in principle is problematic. When asked if Spartak was looking for a new striker, Fedotov put it this way: “Not even a striker, but a scorer!”
Game tone
No one suffers from a lack of practice: since mid-summer, the team has played 7-8 matches a month. Vladimir Fedotov, rushing about the idea of getting rid of ballast, suspended unloading, so no one was exhausted so far fatally. An unsuccessful landing on the coccyx prevents Nikita Bazhenov from playing. Roman Pavlyuchenko, who had previously suffered from a lack of concentration, now does not always get enough sleep at night: a small child has appeared in his family.
Cold war
The match in Tomsk forever glorified the referee Kulalaev: the general director of Spartak Shavlo wanted to prove that the judge took the money, the head of the team Zhilyaev claimed that from CSKA. The prosecutor’s office, which was connected at the deputy’s request, didn’t discern the judge’s actions. But when he took away 3 points of CSKA from Tomsk, the captain Titov took the floor, drawing attention to the fact that the odds for the victory of the army at the bookmakers rapidly collapsed from 2.05 to 1.45, and some offices generally removed this match from their lines.
Domestic championship
Unlike last season, when Spartak failed matches with direct competitors and took second place thanks to victories over Rostov and Shinnikov, this year Spartak successfully plays with the Big Four clubs. This year Spartak played a draw with CSKA twice, won a full-time confrontation with Lokomotiv with a draw and a victory, and a victory in St. Petersburg over Zenit with a score of 4: 1 was generally Spartak’s best game in the last two years.
Favorite
Vladimir Fedotov:
“We have long gone to ensure that Spartak showed reasonable team football - today it plays like that. However, the implementation of the moments remains a problem.
In my opinion, Spartak is the most fun team in Russia, which plays with a great sense of humor.
The attack of CSKA is not inferior to any European club. For her, on the one hand, it is difficult to oppose something, but it is very interesting to look for an antidote. Preparing a coach for such a match resembles preparing a chess player for an extremely difficult game.
Victories in European competitions are valued more than victories in domestic competitions. The task before our team has been set for a long time: victory in the championship and getting into the main bracket of the Champions League. What will happen next? Wait and see.
If in the theater the plot is known in advance and the actor, talented or mediocre, will still strangle Desdemona, then anything is possible in football. ”
Forecast EXPORT: 4th place
Anton Otkidach, Evgeniy Statsenko