We have picked out the most interesting features of matchday six.

Last two top twos clash

Zenit St. Petersburg broke a whole number of records last season as they cruised to the earliest Russian Premier Liga win in history, and right on their coattails were Lokomotiv Moscow. In fact, not only have the pair have finished first and second respectively in the RPL in both of the last two seasons, they have also disputed the last two Russian Super Cups. In 2018/19 Zenit were champions for the first time in four seasons after ending the campaign eight points clear of the Railroaders, who had to make do with lifting the Russian Cup and then the Super Cup as they came back from 2-1 down as Aleksey Miranchuk struck twice in the last 15 minutes.

After winning the double last season, Zenit exacted Super Cup revenge in the 2020/21 curtain raiser to hold all three domestic trophies. That win is one of just three in their last 12 competitive meetings though. Under Yury Semin’s charge from the autumn of 2016 and this summer, Lokomotiv lost once to Zenit in four home games at the RZD Arena, and have been their closest challengers in the league in the last two seasons. Between Zenit’s Super Cup wins on penalties in 2015 and by a 2-1 scoreline in 2008, however, Lokomotiv managed just a solitary win in 18 meetings.

Of the 25 opponents Lokomotiv have faced in the Russian Premier Liga, they have the worst win ratio (28%) against Zenit. As if to return the favour, other than Baltika Kaliningrad (who played Zenit only six times in the RPL) and Asmaral Moscow (twice), Zenit’s next lowest win ratio (30%) comes against Lokomotiv. Only Spartak and CSKA Moscow have played more RPL matches against both of them.

When they meet on Sunday 30 August on matchday six, they do so with Zenit once again on top of the table, but with a chink of hope for Lokomotiv; the reigning champions finally saw their 23-match unbeaten league come to an end on the last matchday, and before Dynamo Moscow’s feisty 1-0 win midweek it was Lokomotiv themselves who had last emerged victorious. 

Southern derby as Krasnodar play catch up with Rostov

The battle for southern bragging rights resumes this weekend as two of the RPL’s European representatives clash; Rostov, destined for the Europa League qualifying rounds, travel to Champions League-chasing FC Krasnodar. Both sides have been fighting at the business end of the table in recent years, but their rivalry goes back way further and deeper than mere positional superiority.

Some of the most ancient settlements in what is modern-day Russia are found in the southern regions of Krasnodar Krai and Rostov Oblast; although the history of FC Krasnodar vs FC Rostov is not as long, it nevertheless holds a serious passion. When we spoke to Ragnar Sigurdsson, who played in seven derbies from his time with both clubs and never ended on the losing side, earlier this year, he described what it was like to play in this fixture. “When you feel the atmosphere, the fans, and how much it matters to them - especially when both teams are near the top of the table like they are now - these games are so electric. You get pumped, a little bit nervous, you're really alive. You sprint faster than normal and tackle harder; everything is fantastic about this feeling.

As if to prove how closely-fought the Krasnodar vs Rostov derby is, six of the last seven in the RPL have ended as draws. All of the last three in Krasnodar have seen four goals scored, while Rostov haven’t won any of the last 12 league meetings. In fact, two their only victories against Krasnodar came in 2014 firstly in RPL and later in Russian Cup final. Right now though, they hold the advantage in the RPL table as they sit on nine points, three behind Zenit in the lead, with Krasnodar two points further back.

Armymen fight to escape bottom half against form team Akhmat

It is not often that Akhmat Grozny enjoy an advantage over CSKA. The Chechen side have never finished above CSKA in the RPL table, but as things stand after five matchdays they are the ones challenging around the European places while CSKA as in the bottom half. After only picking up one point from their first two matches, Andrey Talalaev’s side have won their last three league games - one of only two sides to manage it alongside FC Sochi - while CSKA have failed to win any of their last three.

When it comes to direct meetings though, CSKA have by far the better record. They have won the last five in a row, all with clean sheets, while they haven’t conceded in the last five visits to Akhmat Arena, winning the last four. In fact, Akhmat have only scored one goal in the last 10 RPL clashes. They have shown some real quality in front of goal recently though, with eight goals in their last three matches, including three away to last season’s runners up Lokomotiv Moscow as they finished with only nine men on the pitch.

Winless newcomers face off in basement battle

FC Khimki almost sent shockwaves through Russian football when they cruised through to the Cup final this summer. Having already beaten RPL sides Rubin Kazan and FC Orenburg in the earlier rounds, they crushed third-placed FNL rivals Torpedo Moscow 5-1 in the quarter-final before knocking hosts Ural Ekaterinburg out of the semi-final 3-1. 

Khimki Arena has hosted Champions League football in the past when CSKA Moscow were temporary residents at FC Khimki’s home ground, while Rotor manager Aleksandr Khatskevitch has experience at the top level of European football as a player. He was in the Dynamo Kyiv team that thrashed Barcelona 4-0 in the Camp Nou in the 1998/99 campaign.

Since returning to the top flight for the first time in 16 years though, they have found going much tougher. Since Dmitry Gunko replaced Sergey Yuran, they have only picked up two points in their five RPL matches and sit in the automatic relegation zone. The only consolation is that they are still above fellow promoted side Rotor Volgograd, who have just one point. 

Photo: Vyacheslav Evdokimov/Zenit