Russian Premier League (RPL) exits winter season holidays with matches of the 19th round. In the first game of the spring segment of the Russian Championship, “Rostov” and Samara “Krylya Sovetov” will play.
However, the central match of the tour, and perhaps the entire second half of the championship, will be the meeting in St. Petersburg, where the local Zenit will meet with the Moscow Spartak. During the winter transfer window, the St. Petersburgers were the most active, which was dictated by the need to catch up with the unexpected leader of the tournament in the person of Krasnodar. Another Brazilian landing force landed on the banks of the Neva in the person of defender Nino, as well as attacking midfielders Pedro and Arthur. Now Zenit has a very deep reserve, which will allow it to play on several fronts at once and carry out a painless rotation. At the training camp, the newcomers showed themselves quite well, and they will not have problems with adaptation, because they ended up in one of the most “Brazilian” clubs in Europe.
“Spartak” also made some noise in the transfer market, shelling out about 15 million euros, exorbitant in these days, for the forward of the Dutch “Twente” Manfred Ugalde. The young Costa Rican has become a kind of symbol of improving relations between Russia and Europe within the transfer market, however, judging by the harsh and not very far-sighted statements of the Twente management, a full thaw is still far away. But his inexpensive acquisition and his scoring qualities are now worrying Spartak fans. It is likely that the “red-whites” have lost their leader Quincy Promes, and it is not yet clear what the story of the criminal prosecution of the attacking midfielder may lead to. In mid-February, a court in Amsterdam sentenced Promes to six years in prison for cocaine smuggling. The player's side filed an appeal against this decision, so a long and painful process lies ahead. It is likely that this case will prevent Promes from playing his best football, but as Thursday's events showed, the footballer will first have to work hard to return to his favorite pastime. He was unable to board the flight from Dubai to St. Petersburg. It is noted that everyone was allowed on board except Promes. What is the reason for the detention, what will follow and whether he will be able to play against Zenit is still unclear.
Championship leader Krasnodar, as usual, prepared for spring measuredly and quietly. The hype surrounding Ilzat Akhmetov's departure to Zenit quickly subsided, and young Colombian national team defender Kevin Castaño and Brazilian winger Victor Sa were acquired for scarce positions. To confirm their championship ambitions, Vladimir Ivich’s team needs to beat Rubin Kazan, which surprised them in the fall with its stable defense and targeted attack. Experienced coach Rashid Rakhimov showed that it is too early to write him off and he can work in very limited conditions.
Dynamo and Lokomotiv will meet in the capital's derby. Both teams are unlikely to compete for first place, but a place in the top three is a goal they can achieve. In the winter, the railway workers signed a textured French defender Gerzinho Niamsi and Artem Dzyuba's backup Said Hamulich. It is unlikely that the Bosnian will force the experienced Russian forward out of the lineup, so we should soon expect news about the automatic extension of Dzyuba’s contract. To do this, he needs to chalk up several effective actions. Dynamo did not shy away and spent the transfer window very quietly. Apparently, coach Marcel Licka is confident in the available pool of players: expensive summer acquisitions should yield results and help the “blue and white” compete for championship medals and the Russian Cup.
It will be no less interesting on the opposite side of the standings. Already in the 19th round in Kaliningrad, two outsiders of the championship will meet — Baltika and Sochi. During the tournament, the Kaliningraders did not cut short and fire Sergei Ignashevich, entrusting him with the team at least until the end of the season. In the winter, Baltika added a number of interesting newcomers who should help in maintaining their residence in the top division. But Sochi did something more radical, launching another global restructuring of the club. The head coach of the team was a coach with a name in Europe, Spaniard Roberto Moreno. Strong transfers were made under him, and the team was updated by almost half. This will be a different “Sochi” also because the bright Ecuadorian Christian Noboa, who played in Russia for about 15 years, left Russia.
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