"CSKA became the sole leader"

2006-08-20 22:58 © EuroFootball.com

During the weekend, the matches of the 16th round of the Russian "Premier League" took place. The sole leader of the league became the defending champions, Moscow's "CSKA" club, who took advantage of the unexpected failure of Nalchik's "Spartak" and rose to the first position. "Lokomotiv" jumped to third place, after nine matches finally won "Dynamo", achieved a rare victory. "Rostov" also won, and three matches ended in a draw.

The first match on Saturday took place in Vladivostok, where the local team "Luch" met Moscow's "Spartak". It's worth noting that "Spartak" did not play with their optimal lineup, as they had Champions League matches on Wednesday.

The match started actively and "Spartak" players were the first to make an impact, but the linesman did not see whether the ball crossed the goal line and did not count the guests' goal. The guests had chances, but failed to capitalize on them, and at the end of the match, "Luch-Energia" player R. Monaryov scored a goal, leading the home team to a 1-0 victory.

In Moscow, the champions "CSKA" faced the surprise of the season, Nalchik's "Spartak". "CSKA" immediately moved to the visitors' half and constantly threatened the guests' defense. However, they failed to score a goal in the first half, while "Spartak" players scored a goal in one of the rare counterattacks and ended the first half leading 0-1.

In the second half, the situation remained the same. "CSKA" attacked, and "Spartak" defended. Eventually, "CSKA" attacks paid off when Jo scored the equalizing goal in the 79th minute. "Spartak" tried to win, but only created one chance, and "CSKA" Brazilian player Vagner Love scored in the 83rd minute to change the result to 2-1 in favor of "CSKA", becoming the sole leader in the league table.

In Yaroslavl, the this year's outsiders - the local "Shinnik" and Moscow's "Dynamo" - played. These matches were crucial for both teams, as a loss would likely mean relegation from the "Premier League" at the end of the season.

Fifteen minutes after the start whistle, the guests took the lead. Then "Shinnik" took the initiative from the hosts and unsuccessfully attacked, but the home team's attacker Anton Chazov equalized the score in the second half, but the goal was disallowed by the referee.

However, "Shinnik" equalized the score in the 66th minute thanks to the efforts of Martino Gorak, shaking "Dynamo" with a tie. But "Dynamo" striker Derlei did not think so, as he scored the second goal for the team towards the end of the match. "Dynamo" won with a score of 1-2 and after this victory they have real chances to avoid the relegation zone.

In the last Saturday match, Samara's "Krylja Sovetov" and Moscow's "Lokomotiv" met. In the first half, both teams attacked actively, but there were no final shots, and the first half ended in a goalless draw.

Just at the beginning of the second half, "Lokomotiv" scored a goal. A few minutes later, "Lokomotiv" newcomer Shamil Asildarov scored a great goal in the second match in the "Premier League". It seemed that the hosts would not do anything, but in the 82nd minute, they softened the result, and in the last minute of the match, it was only the sacrificial actions of Marat Izmailov that prevented the hosts from taking a draw. "Lokomotiv" won with a score of 1-2.

On Sunday, Tomsk hosted the local "Tom" and Moscow's "Torpedo". The match, in which the hosts dominated, ended in a goalless draw, and the teams shared a point.

In Perm, the local "Amkar" played against Moscow's "Moscow". The hosts immediately started attacking and threatening the opponents' goal, but the ball did not enter the goal, and in the 33rd minute, "Amkar" took the lead after a converted penalty.

In the second half, "Amkar" could not decide whether to continue attacking or defend, but in the 52nd minute, they scored the second goal and switched to defense. This was their main mistake, as after twelve minutes, "Moskva" equalized the score within four minutes.

"Moskva" was not satisfied with a draw and scored a third goal, which the referee disallowed due to offside. With five minutes left until the end of the match, "Amkar" launched an attack on the goal, but the result did not change and the match ended in a 2-2 draw.

In the penultimate match of the round, "Saturn" and St. Petersburg's "Zenit" clashed. The visitors ceded the initiative to the hosts, but the latter did not take advantage of it. In the second half, "Zenit" started playing with a 3-5-2 formation and the situation on the pitch began to change. The guests attacked, and the hosts unsuccessfully tried to organize counterattacks.

With no goals scored by the teams, "Zenit" coach brought back Alexander Panov, who returned to his hometown club, and the team started playing with three forwards. However, this did not help, and the match ended in a 0-0 draw.

In the last match of the round, "Rostov" faced Kazan's "Rubin". "Rubin" gave the initiative to the hosts and after ten minutes paid for it with an own goal. Shortly after, the hosts scored a second goal.

After conceding two goals, the visitors changed their tactics and managed to soften the lead in the first half. In the second half, "Rubin" attacked more, while "Rostov" mostly defended and occasionally organized attacks. Despite their efforts, "Rubin" failed to equalize the score. The match ended 2-1 in favor of the hosts.

Results of the 16th round:

1 - 0

88' [1 - 0] Roman Monarev

2 - 1

43' [0 - 1] Roman Kontsedalov

79' [1 - 1] Jo Alves

83' [2 - 1] Vagner Love

1 - 2

15' [0 - 1] Maksim Romaschenko

71' [1 - 1] Martin Gorak

88' [1 - 2] Derlei

1 - 2