On the eve of the 2007 Russian Championship, starting on Saturday, Sport Today is evaluating the readiness of all 16 Premier League clubs for the new season. The first part of the announcement is about eight teams that will become stronger in the new season than in the previous one.
 | ZENIT + 35% |  |
Tangible acquisitions : Dominguez (Rubin), Pogrebnyak (Tom), Zyryanov (Torpedo), Tymoshchuk (Shakhtar, Ukraine).
Tangible losses : Kerzhakov (Sevilla, Spain), Maresh (Sparta, Czech Republic), Ming (Ulsan Hyundai, Korea), Panov (Torpedo).
Place last season : 4th.
Ambition : Championship.
Summary : St. Petersburg “Zenith” is trying on the ambitions of a “club of the European level." Pogrebnyak was bought in place of Kerzhakov sold to Sevilla, whose contract ended in the summer. The ram type forward and Hiddink's favorite will probably be the first player of such a plan in Zenit since the time of Gennady Popovich, who has real chances to gain a foothold in the base. In a couple of Pogrebnyak taken the best legionnaire of the championship of Russia last year, Dominguez, who spent a convincing season for the “Ruby”. The problems in the center of the field are designed to be solved by torpedo man Zyryanov and ex-captain of Shakhtar, participant in the 2006 World Cup, Anatoly Tymoshchuk, who were wooed in Liverpool, Juventus and other European super clubs. The purchase of Tymoshchuk (the transfer amount amounted to about $ 20 million) is a record for Russia. Be that as it may, now the Lawyer needs to decide which of these players will play the basis, and who has the role of substitutes - at the moment there are six players claiming two positions of central midfielders: Tymoshchuk, Zyryanov, Radimov, Riksen, Lee Ho and Gorshkov. Problems in the defense have not been completely resolved, where another central defender is clearly not enough, as well as with discipline - there is no certainty that Riksen and Radimov will get along together.
 | SATURN + 30% | |
Tangible acquisitions : Karjaka (Benfica, Portugal), Kirichenko (Moscow), Gogua (Spartak Nch), Botvinev (Shakhtar, Ukraine), Nemov (Wings of the Soviets).
Tangible losses : Sabitov (Spartak), Bareiro (Libertad, Paraguay, rent), Jean Carlos (Corinthians, Brazil, rent), Obzhera, Fodrek (both - Artmedia, Slovakia).
Place last season : 11th.
Ambition : UEFA Zone.
Summary : “Saturn” has strengthened in almost all lines, and judging by the names, quite impressive. The Moscow Region club acquired one of the most stable strikers of the Russian championship in recent years, Kirichenko, one of the best newcomers of last season Gogua and the former leader of the Samara “Wings” Karjaku, whose career in Portugal did not work out. In a short period of time, Vladimir Weiss managed to make a disciplined and unyielding (16 draws and only 7 losses in the 2006 season) out of Saturn with a well-functioning defense, but with tangible problems in the attack. If the acquired beginners will be able to exchange at least half of the draws for victory, then Saturn can count on a much higher place in the standings.
 | RUBIN + 25% | |
Tangible acquisitions : Gitselov (Boden, Sweden), Noboa (Emelek, Ecuador), Fabiu Felishiu (Real Sociedad, Spain), Budylin (Torpedo), Volkov (Torpedo), Jean Narde (“ Dynamo ”), Zhailson (Corinthians, Brazil), Paunovic (Getafe, Spain).
Tangible losses : Dominguez (Zenit), Khusin (retired), Kinkladze (Anorthosis, Cyprus), Ashvetia (Karl Zeiss, Germany), Yalland (Volerenga, Norway), Scotty (Argentinos Juniors) , Argentina).
Place last season : 5th.
Ambition : UEFA Zone.
Summary : The transfer policy of Rubin has always been calm and balanced - to match the head coach Kurban Berdyev. But this season seemed to break through: a dozen newcomers joined the club. Kazan residents definitely managed to get the maximum financial benefit from the timely sale of Alejandro Dominguez to Zenit. Experienced players like Budylin and Paunovich will surely come to Kazan’s court, it’s worth waiting for surprises from the others as well, for example, central midfielder Fabiu Felishiu Kurban Berdyev compared no less with the playmaker of London Arsenal Fabregas, although he noted that “ the Portuguese, however, does not have the speed of a young Spanish geek. ” But "owns the pass from the left foot" - which in modern football is certainly important.
 | ROSTOV + 20% | |
Tangible acquisitions : Gerus (Luch-Energia), Bliznyuk (Shinnik), Gorak (Shinnik), Kanyenda (Lokomotiv, returned from lease), Vinogradov (Krylya Sovetov), Pyanovich (Spartak) M), Omelyanchuk (Lokomotiv).
Tangible losses : Orlov, Chichkin (both are Khimki), Lizans (Kuban, the lease ended), Gogniev (Kuban), Tanasievich (Dynamo, the lease ended), Gutierrez, Perez, Bagi.
Place last season : 12th.
Ambition : A place in the figure eight.
Summary : “Rostov” conducted an impressive selection, crowning it with the acquisition of Spartak Pyanovich. If the Serb successfully adapts to the new team and begins to score, things should go uphill for Rostovites, as there is no shortage of reliable players of a decent level in other lines. Midfielder, whose share last season accounted for two-thirds of all the goals scored by the team, was strengthened by the universal Vinogradov, transfers of two former Zenit defenders - Czech Martin Gorak and Serb Milan Vieshtitsa were also bought out. The latter, apparently, still found a common language with partners - so there is no reason to wait for a new fingal for an overly diligent game in matches with some Moscow teams.
 | AMKAR + 15% | |
Tangible acquisitions : Peev (Dynamo Kyiv, Ukraine), Milovanović (Tavria, Macedonia), Soldeville (Apollon, Cyprus), Drinčić (Gaziantepspor, Turkey), Gaal (Hajduk, Croatia).
Tangible losses : Ziyati (Celia, Qatar), Stepanov (Shinnik), Vorobyov (Khimki), Yordanov (CSKA, Bulgaria).
Place last season : 13th.
Ambition : A place in the top ten.
Summary : Perm head coach Rashid Rakhimov took up the restructuring of the team seriously, almost completely updating the middle line. And Peev, and Soldeville, and Drinchich are the unconditional players of the base. Soldevilla, the first ethnic Spaniard in the Russian championship, for ten years played for the Barcelona Espanyol and was the captain of the club. Former Dynamo Kyiv Georgy Peev at first hinted that he would like to be in a more successful club than Amkar, but soon decided that he would be comfortable in the Bulgarian diaspora. In any case, the creation of a new team is a long and painstaking process, and Rakhimov perfectly understands this: “We are no longer talking about survival in the Premier League. But it’s too early to talk about getting into the UEFA Cup. It is necessary to stabilize the game, and then dream of more. ”
 | KUBAN + 10% | |
Tangible acquisitions : Laizans, Gabulov (both CSKA), Gogniev (Rostov), Asildarov (Lokomotiv, returned from lease), Okorochkov (Salyut-Energia), Jeffton (Spartak Nch).
Tangible losses : Kruglov (Lokomotiv, the lease ended), Topchu (Moscow), Gerasimov (completed his career).
Place last season : -
Ambition : Stay in the Premier League.
Summary : The most clogging club of the first division began reinforcing with an attack — Shamil Asildarov turned out of the lease, Spartak Gogniev moved from Rostov. Apart from the loss of Andrei Topchu, who transferred to Moscow, the team managed to maintain the backbone and gain strength with good players by the standards of the Russian championship. Goalkeeper Vladimir Gabulov, who was sitting on a bench in CSKA, and another ex-soldier Juris Laizans were added to the already mentioned ones. Of course, it is not worth waiting for the Kuban to solve some super-tasks - neither the financial condition of the club (the budget for newcomers is about $ 24 million) nor the composition. The reaction of the head coach Pavel Yakovenko to the question of whether the team has two full-fledged squads is eloquent: "We, God forbid, pick one."
 | LOCOMOTIVE + 5% | |
Tangible acquisitions : Korchagin (Spartak Nch), Kochish (Sheriff, Moldova), Pelizzoli (Regina, Italy), Rodolfo (Dynamo, Ukraine), Kontsedalov (Spartak Nch).
Tangible losses : Evseev (Torpedo), Kingston (Hearts, Scotland), Pimenov (Dynamo), Asildarov (Kuban, the lease ended).
Place last season : 3rd.
Ambition : Championship.
Summary : The long-awaited revolution in Lokomotiv was late, but it did happen - the legendary ex-trainer Yury Semin, who was sitting in the presidency, was replaced by the fans, who associate the fans with the best that has ever happened to the team. Semin's second coming coincided with the appointment of Anatoly Byshovets to the post of the steering team, whose football views, of course, required a number of changes in the composition of the team. However, the selection work does not fully comply with the club’s ambitions: instead of the promised Gyan, Lucas and Eremenko, the team was replenished with the once talented striker Korchagin, the unstable Italian goalkeeper Pelizzoli and strengthened the defense by the Brazilian Rodolfo from Kiev. The almost cosmic budget of the railway workers, Byshovets’s strange love of chess and rumors of internal conflicts between the old Lokomotiv guard and the new main one have not yet added to the fans confidence in the correctness of the chosen course.
 | CSKA + 5% | |
Tangible acquisitions : Ramon (Corinthians, Brazil), Caner (Manisaspor, Turkey).
Tangible losses : Olic (Hamburg, Germany), Laizans, Gabulov (both Kuban), Samodin, Denisov (both Dnipro, Ukraine).
Place last season : 1st.
Ambition : Championship.
Summary : The current champions of Russia remain true to the "point" selection. But the advances given to the “new Kaka,” 18-year-old Brazilian midfielder Ramon, have yet to be justified. And not the fact that this will happen before our fields come into a condition suitable for football. Last year's enchanting debut of Jo is most likely an exception to the rule. The same Daniel Carvalho took a whole season to adapt to the game of CSKA and the championship of Russia. Although with the help of the Brazilian army colony, Ramon will be much easier than his predecessors, especially since with the departure of Olic, the competition in the attack against CSKA Moscow has weakened. The army team postponed the problem of a shortage of defenders indefinitely, but managed to save the team leaders - Carvalho, Zhirkov and Akinfeev, at least until the summer.
The continuation of the material is about clubs whose chances of success in the 2007 season, according to Sport Today estimates, have not increased (Dynamo, Khimki, Spartak M, Spartak Nch, Luch-Energia, “ Tom ”,“ Wings of the Soviets ”,“ Moscow ”), - read on the website tomorrow.