Lokomotiv beat Rostov on penalties in Match Premier Cup dead rubber

Lokomotiv Moscow beat Rostov on penalties in their final Match Premier Cup fixture after a breathless 3-3 draw. Murilo, Grzegorz Krychowiak and Dmitriy Rybchinskiy replied to Maksim Osipenko, Pavel Mamaev and Roman Eremenko’s goals in normal time.

Yuriy Semin’s men went into the game knowing they couldn’t catch Spartak Moscow, but they still finished second in the standings. They didn’t let it affect their impetus though as Krychowiak’s close-range header forced an instinctive block from Maksim Rudakov.

On 17 minutes Eremenko’s header was tipped onto the bar and over by Guilherme. Two minutes later Evgeniy Chernov was outmuscled by Murilo at a corner allowing the Brazilian centre back to scramble home a scruffy opener.

Three minutes before the break Guilherme lost his concentration with a deep cross. Khoren Bayramyan headed it onto the post, but it was Osipenko who tapped it home from the rebound.

Within four minutes of the restart Rostov were ahead. Eldor Shomurodov held the ball patiently out wide on the right before swinging in a perfect curling cross for Mamaev to slide past substitute keeper Nikita Medvedev.

Lokomotiv drew level with an efficient counter attack following pressure to win the ball back from Roman Eremenko. Rybchinskiy and Danil Kulikov combined to feed Krychowiak racing into the box, from where the Pole made no mistake.

On 69 minutes Eremenko struck the bar from distance before giving Rostov the lead by tapping into an empty net after Medvedev horribly misjudged a deep cross. Rybchinskiy redeemed his keeper’s howling error with a composed dribble and smart finish two minutes later.

Lokomotiv had three glorious chances to seal the win in the last 20 minutes. Bryan Idowu’s snap shot was tipped wide by a stunning Rudakov full-stretch save, while Dmitriy Barinov spurned two great chances at 2-2 and at 3-3, squirming both shots wide.

In the penalty shootout, Aleksandr Kolomeytsev missed for Lokomotiv, but Evgeniy Chernov and 18-year-old Vladislav Kozhemyakin saw theirs saved as well to hand Lokomotiv victory.

Lokomotiv will fly to Spain for their third training camp on Friday 14 February, while Rostov haven’t announced details of a third training camp yet.

Match Premier Cup final standings:
1 Spartak        7pts
2 Lokomotiv    5pts
3 Rostov         3pts
4 Partizan       2pts

Lokomotiv 3-3 Rostov (5-4 pens)
9 February, Aspire Academy, Qatar
Goals: Murilo (19’), Krychowiak (61’), Rybchinskiy (74’); Osipenko (42’), Mamaev (50’), Eremenko (71’)

Lokomotiv: Guilherme (Medvedev 46’), Howedes (Idowu 55’), Murilo (Kulikov 46’), Kverkvelia, Ignatyev, Rybus (Zhivoglyadov 82’), Magkeev, Barinov, Krychowiak, Joao Mario (Kolomeytsev 87’), Tugarev (Rybchinskiy 46’)
Rostov: Rudakov, Osipenko, Chistyakov (Hadzikadunic 77’), Logashov (Kozlov 46’), Chernov, Eremenko (Kozhemyakin 77’), Popov, Mamaev (Osinov 70’), Zaynutdinov (Dolgov 46’), Bayramyan (Saplinov 46’), Shomurodov (Proshlyakov 77’)