The Russian Premier League is back – and only five of the 16 teams found the back of the net in the opening round of fixtures.
Spartak Moscow had no such worries in front of goal, easing to a 4-0 home victory over newly-promoted Arsenal Tula.
Krasnodar ran out 3-0 winners as they hosted another of the top flight new-boys, Tom Tomsk.
The bookies’ favourites for this season’s title, Zenit St Petersburg, recorded a goalless draw at home to Lokomotiv Moscow.
Spartak Moscow – Arsenal Tula 4:0
Is this the season in which boy wonder Jano Ananidze finally comes good on his undoubted potential?
Тhe 23-year-old playmaker netted a first half brace before Quincy Promes followed suit after the interval to give Spartak a thumping win over Arsenal Tula.
The Muscovites took the lead in the fifth minute. Promes’ zipped pass from the by-line was deftly controlled by Ananidze, who sent a curling shot into the far corner.
The visitors had chances but were two behind just after the half hour when Ananidze fired a 25-yard thunderbolt into the back of the net.
A minute after the break, left back Dmitri Kombarov topped off a fine dribble with an accurate low cross, which Promes guided in from close range.
The attacker added gloss to the scoreline in injury time when he blasted across goal from 12 yards.
Spartak’s Ananidze, in an interview with TASS, described the game, “The first minutes of the game with Arsenal were really quite nervy. It is likely that this came from the fact that we were playing the first game of the season in front of our supporters and really wanted to please them. All of the guys were a bit nervous, especially after the unplanned draw in Cyprus (against AEK Larnaca in the Europa League). We took little time in getting the game under our control and it became easier after the first goal.
Ananidze claimed that he could have scored more and preferred his long range strike to his curling first. He said: “I rarely shoot from long range; I decided to try it and struck it very well. I am very happy that the fans were pleased in the first home game of the season.”
Looking forward to the season as a whole, the Georgian claimed that Champions League qualification is Spartak’s goal. He declared: “Getting to the Champions League was the task set by the manager before the start of this season. I watched Zenit and CSKA in the opening round and I can say that losing Hulk, Axel Witsel and Danny will have an effect on Zenit. They are very good footballers who defined the team’s attacking play. It will be more difficult for Zenit without these players. The same goes for CSKA. Ahmed Musa, who was a leader on the pitch, left the team. They will need some time to regroup.”
Arsenal coach Sergei Pavlov reacted to his side’s defeat, “I want to congratulate our opponents on their deserved victory. It is difficult to immediately give the reasons for defeat. In the first half, we had chances but did not take them. In the second half, the outcome of the game became clear. We could not save the game, every position went wrong. Every player played as the opponent allowed him. We could not use our chances and Spartak became stronger with every goal. So, what I can say is that the Muscovites deservedly won.”
Krasnodar – Tom Tomsk 3:0
Two goals from striker Fyodor Smolov, either side of Ari’s strike, gave Krasnodar a comfortable home win over Tom Tomsk.
Smolov opened the scoring in the dying seconds of the first half. A long pass was well controlled by Ari, who put the ball on a plate for Smolov to finish at the near post.
In the 57th minute, Ari produced some Brazilian magic to score with a looping header from the edge of the box.
Smolov made sure of the win three minutes later when he was afforded too much space and rifled in from 20 yards.
The visitors were reduced to ten men when Ciuperca, number 92, was shown a second yellow in the 92nd minute.
Krasnodar boss Oleg Kononov gave his thoughts after the game, “The first half was difficult. We had control but Tom defended very well. We lacked composure in front of the penalty area in terms of crosses and shots. It was good that we scored; we started a good move and finished it. The goal was important for us. In the second half, Tom began to open up and we scored two goals. We could have scored more as well.”
Kononov spoke about midfielder Pavel Mamaev, who was part of the infamous Monte Carlo casino crew (Read more about the Monte Carlo incident here) in the summer. He said: “Pavel was getting back to his level. He had a few issues and was very tired at the end. Now he needs time to find his form. He had an opportunity to score; then the fans would not have been so angry at him.”
Tom Tomsk manager Valeriy Petrakov bemoaned the fact that he did not have a full squad to choose from. He said: “The problem was that we still don’t have all of our players, who are still abroad. So, of course there were problems for the starting line-up in today’s game. Players were playing out of position – it was a pilot set-up.”
Zenit St Petersburg – Lokomotiv Moscow 0:0
Lokomotiv Moscow held Zenit to a goalless draw in St Petersburg.
Oleg Shatov should have put the hosts ahead in the first half but headed wide from close range.
In the 64th minute, Javi Garcia was left unmarked by Lokomotiv but failed to put his header on target.
Former Chelsea man Yuri Zhirkov was next to try his luck with a header but Marinato in the Lokomotiv goal produced a quick reaction save to keep the score level.
During the game, outgoing striker Hulk was given a standing ovation as he bid farewell to the Zenit fans.
Zenit boss Mircea Lucescu, in charge of his first league game, spoke to the official club website, “The first thing that I did not like is the result. In terms of content, we had every advantage throughout the match and controlled the game, which is not how it always used to be. There were 4 or 5 moments where we should have scored, in contrast to our opponents who did not create anything. We played against a very experienced team, who were quite aggressive and we knew they would be.”
Speaking about the future of Axel Witsel, Lucescu said: “With regard to the first question, Witsel wants to leave. Even today, he had no great desire to play and wanted to avoid injury. When I decided to make the change and asked if he was ready to play, he said yes. Before the first of September, until the transfer window closes, all will be fine. I’m going to convince him to play for the team, because we need his experience.”
Lokomotiv manager Igor Cherevchenko spoke to the press after the game. He said: “In the first official game, the guys were feeling the pressure. In terms of movement it was clear that the team is yet to move on from pre-season. However, in terms of commitment and desire to win, there can be no questions of the players. We will continue to work on our game.”
He added: “Regarding Zenit, we watched their friendlies and the SuperCup game with CSKA. They have changed a bit – the football has become more about the team. Is it easier to play Zenit without Hulk? They have world-class stars but, in this and last season, we drew with them. It means they are the same.”
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