Krasnodar miss chance to go third after goalless home draw

Krasnodar 0-0 Nizhny Novgorod
Sunday 12 December, Krasnodar Stadium

Man of the Match: Vladimir Ilyin (Krasnodar)

In almost every way Krasnodar dominated struggling Nizhny Novgorod except one - the all-important goals column - as Aleksandr Kerzhakov masterminded a resilient performance from his side to end the year on a high of sorts.

A rare appearance from veteran defender Aleksandr Martynovich - his first of the season after a lengthy injury layoff - wasn’t enough to compensate for the suspensions depriving Viktor Goncharenko of four key players; midfielders Aleksandr Chernikov and Grzegorz Krychowiak, and defenders Tonny Vilhenna and Cristian Ramirez.

There was very late drama in the final minute of added time as Bogdan Reichman went down in the box and a VAR review was called to check if a penalty was needed, but the challenge was judged to be fair and Nizhny Novogord escaped with a precious point.

Krasnodar remain fourth on 29 points, while Nizhny Novgorod stay 13th on 19 points.

Next RPl fixtures: Saturday/Sunday 26/27 February 2022 - Krasnodar vs Lokomotiv; Nizhny Novgorod vs Ural