9 things you need to know about Round 36 in Russian Premier League
1. Nizhny Novgorod governor Shantsev
Nizhny Novogord regional governor Valery Shantsev came up with a smart piece of analysis, astutely picking up on the fact that Volga NN may get relegated this season (they currently lie in 14th place in the RPL), while Nizhny Novgorod are top contenders for promotion (they are the current First Division leaders). His conclusion to this was that the two clubs may merge together, irrespective of their final positions. It is easy to see the positives of this move (especially for the local budget), but there is one big catch. If the two teams end up in the same division, it will become rather difficult to set a points target for the next season.
2. Lokomotiv defence
After the embarrassing defeat in Grozny Jose Couceiro decided to bring Maxim Belyaev back into the center back position, with Yeschenko replacing Yanbaev on the left flank. Some Loko fans are already calling for the Burlak-Belyaev pair to start for Russia at the Erupean Championships. But emotions aside, we have two unique teams facing each other – both have an all-Russian defence, but the one with the first team internationals actually lost. It’s not long to go till the Euro…
3. Lokomotiv’s 9 Russians
Staying with the Railwaymen, the CSKA defenders not only lose out to Loko’s counterparts, but neither could they cope with the opponents Russian-dominated attacking force. Two foreigners in the first team is no mean feat, only Tom have done better in the RPL this season (they had 10). Perhaps the best rule is for the club owners not to look into the players passports, but to let them show their worth on the pitch. Then the Ozdoevs, Belyaevs and Ignatievs will get their chance to beat a Champions League 1/8-finalists.
4. Salata’s wondergoal
This one will be short. If you saw Peter Crouch’s goal, you should see this one by Rostov player Kornel Salata. In fact, it is rather reminiscent of another Crouchey superstrike – the overhead kick against Galatasaray. Both shots are simply spectacular.
5. «Emenike’s Hat-trick»
The Russian football equivalent of the Gordie Howe Hat-trick was achieved by Emmanuel Emenike. Spartak’s Nigerian striker managed to score a goal, provide an assist and get in trouble for giving the finger to the Dynamo fans. It was also the first victory against their historic rivals since autumn of 2007.
6. Snowballs
Who would have thought that this harmless activity could cause such a stir here. But the unusually chilly spring (it was below zero on March 25) and continuous snowfall made it seem like December. The fans at the Khimki stadium found an odd way of cheering and warming themselves up: they littered the pitch with snowballs, throwing them at anyone who was foolish enough to run near the fans zone. This wasn’t considered to be racist, though, just plain stupid. One of the players got a particularly skilled sniper having a go at him:
7. Zenit fans quit after 5 minutes
A group of highly active Zenit supporters demonstrated their dislike of the police regulations by leaving the who stand empty after the first five minutes of the game. Apparently, the reason was a row with the policemen at the stadium, who prevented the supporters from putting on «a show». Perhaps the loss of their support cost their team three precious points, as Zenit drew 1-1 with the Kazan club.
8. Roman Shirokov’s «pearls of wisdom»
One of the most vocal RPL players, Shirokov has tried to keep a low profile this season, but he more than made up for it after this game. Here is just some of the post-match quotes:
«Let agricultural workers use this field to herd sheep, or goats, or chickens, whatever it is they herd. You can’t play football on this surface.»
«What really changed after we applied the autumn-spring reverse calendar? We are still playing on manure.»
«I haven’t seen a decent pitch this season, aside from Makhachkala and Luzhniki. Tomsk has a vastly impressive pitch, and the surface in the Rubin arena is just a masterpiece.»
«I guess Moscow wants a twist in the script for the RPL this season. Anything goes – handballs, fouls – as long as Zenit doesn’t score.»
Oh how we missed you, Roman!
9. Karyaka’s 100th career goal
Up until this round, Terek Grozny remained the only side to win all their matches since the restart. This made their home defeat against Volga all the more surprising, but kudos to the Nizhny Novogorod’s club veteran midfielder Andrey Karyaka, who celebrated his 100th career goal. He became the 28th player (10th out of those still playing), who reached this milestone and we are pleased to send our most sincere congratulations to him. Well done!