The weekend’s action saw 25 goals rain in, with the top two both winning. At the bottom, Khimki lost ground on Nalchik while Kuban stay clear of the drop-zone.
Spartak Moscow faced a minor wobble in their pursuit of Rubin at the top of the RPL, in a 3-2 win away to Terek Grozny. Pavel Yakovlev (25) opened the scoring before Welliton scored his fourteenth and fifteenth league goals (29, 33) to put The Meat in a commanding position before the break. German Kutarba pulled one back just after the hour (62) before Pavel Lakhiyalov’s late strike (90) but it was too little too late.
Rubin Kazan suffered no such attack of the yips, filing a comprehensive 3-0 win at Dinamo Moscow. Argentine Alejandro Dominguez converted twice from the penalty spot (26, 79) before Alexander Ryazantsev added a third (90).
Mali striker, Dramane Traore, scored the all-important goal (77) in Kuban Krasnodar and Amkar Perm’s relegation “six-pointer” at Kuban Stadium. The result leaves both sides level on 18 points and with four wins each but Amkar retain the better goal difference by three.
Spartak Nalchik kept up with Kuban in an effort to escape relegation with a 3-0 home victory over Tom Tomsk, Vladimir Kisenkov (13) and Shamil Asildarov (39, 75) with the goals.
Meanwhile, FC Khimki went down to a 2-1 defeat in Moscow to CSKA. Aleksandr Antipenko (69) netted for the away side but only after Tomas Necid (14) and Milos Krasic (22) had already fired The Army Men in front, keeping the heat on their cross-town rivals Spartak, six points ahead of them in second place.
Kryliya Sovetov Samara drew 2-2 with FK Rostov-Na-Donu, in Samara. Veteran Czech striker, Jan Koller (48), opened the scoring before Dmitri Akimov (52) pulled Rostov level. Just minutes later Oleg Ivanov (55) put the home team ahead again but Mersudin Ahmetovic (80) rescued a point for the visitors.
Zenit continued their indifferent form, drawing 1-1 at home with Lokomotiv at the Petrovski Stadium. Turkey international Fatih Tekke’s (28) strike meant the points were shared after Wagner (9) had put the Railwaymen infront.
FC Moscow finished the weekend in fourth, level on points with CSKA and in still in touch with the leaders, after a 3-1 win over local rivals Saturn. Ex-Saturn forward Martin Jakubko (2) and Igor Strelkov (75) put FC Moscow ahead. Benoit Angbwa (88) might have made it a nervy finish for the home team but for Alexander Samedov’s (90) last minute strike, sealing the win in front of the biggest crowd of the weekend (36,000).