Goal Threshold: what will be the end of the RPL Winter Cup in Abu Dhabi

The closer the resumption of the season in the Russian Premier League, the closer the denouement of the main off-season tournament with the participation of domestic teams. The group stage of the RPL Winter Cup has come to an end in Abu Dhabi. More about its results, as well as what awaits us in the decisive matches (Rostov will play with Dynamo, CSKA - with Krasnodar, and Zenit - with Spartak) - in the material Izvestia.

Group A

In the first group, where Spartak, Krasnodar and Dynamo Moscow played, the Red-Whites were the final leaders. Dejan Stankovic's side won two games in regulation time, scoring four goals and conceding only two.

The opening game with Krasnodar was not a boring spectacle with the training camp - on the contrary, it gave reason to imagine that the championship had already resumed. From the first minutes, the head coaches of both teams fielded quite combative squads, as close to the main squads as possible. Spartak, for example, had Alexander Maksimenko, Daniil Denisov, Esekiel Barco, Marquinhos, Theo Bongonda and Manfred Ugalde, while Krasnodar had Stanislav Agkatsev, Lucas Olasa, Vitor Tormena, Kevin Castaño, Eduard Spertsyan, John Cordoba and many others. And even when Murad Musaev completely renewed the lineup in the second half, and Stankovic did it at the end of an hour of game time, leaving only Maksimenko, it didn't get worse. Even more fun. The result was 3-2, with Daniil Zorin's game-winning goal in stoppage time.

In their next match Krasnodar managed to rehabilitate themselves after the loss to Spartak by defeating another Moscow team, Dynamo. And this time Musaev again put out against the capital rival almost the draft starting lineup for the spring, except that Kevin Lenini remained in the reserve, giving way to Nikita Krivtsov. Marcel Licka preferred a mixed combination without Luis Chavez, Diego Laxalt, Bitello and Artur, who were saved. Among the leaders of the team in the first half came out Daniil Fomin, Jorge Carrascal, Mumi Ngamalyo, after the break - Fabian Balbuena, Roberto Fernandez and Konstantin Tyukavin.

The game itself was remembered not so much for Cordoba's only goal, but for Tormena's rough foul, who flew into the ankle of Moscow forward Denis Bokov with a straight leg, which provoked a scuffle on the pitch. Even Lichka, who ran onto the pitch and pushed Tormena in the chest, was outraged by the harshness of the foul. This was followed by a small scuffle between the players, after which Vitor received a well-deserved red card. And after the match Dynamo goalkeeper Andrey Lunev made a harsh statement about the opponent, calling Krasnodar "nasty". So much for the "friendly" match! Emotions are worse than in an official game.

The confrontations of the first group ended with a classic sign of domestic soccer: Dynamo vs. Spartak. And here, too, it was not without a bright moment. The outcome of the meeting was decided by the only goal scored by a Dynamo player, though into his own net. Nicholas Marichal, the Bilo-Syni defender, made a strong pass back without looking, goalkeeper Igor Leshchuk tried to handle the ball, but it flew under the crossbar from the goalkeeper's foot. Once again Leshchuk was unlucky in the match against Spartak, even if you don't go on the field against them... But to be fair, Marichal was more to blame here: the trajectory of the ball was as unexpected as possible for Leshchuk, and his attempt to correct the situation resulted in the goalkeeper's foot only redirecting the ball into the goal.

Group B

Zenit, CSKA and Rostov made up the second three of the Winline RPL Winter Cup. This is the order in which they were placed in the standings.

CSKA and Rostov were the first to play. For Marko Nikolic's team, this match was a great opportunity to try out a new tactical scheme: instead of the Army team's usual trio of central defenders, the team used a formal 4-4-2 with a diamond formation that worked well for the Serbian at Lokomotiv, changing slightly during the match depending on the development of attacks and the intensity of the opponent.

Perhaps these innovations were one of the reasons why this match was not the brightest, especially compared to the Krasnodar vs Spartak showdown. Rostov, just like the Muscovites, lacked speed, hence not many attacks. But a goal did happen, albeit a lone one. Tamerlan Musayev brought CSKA the victory in the 75th minute.

Next up in the group was reigning Russian champion Zenit. The first match was against CSKA. A kind of warm-up before the resumption of the RPL, where the Army Men will be the first opponent for the St. Petersburgers.

As for the scheme being played in the spring, Sergei Semak is preparing the team to play in 4-2-3-1, with Brazilian newcomer Luis Henrique as the right winger and Maxim Glushenkov as the "ten" under the striker. And for the injured Vyacheslav Karavaev and Sergei Volkov on the right flank of the defense, the non-core Gustavo Mantuan continues to play alone.

There were no goals in the first half, but after the break, everyone, as they call it, got excited. And it was on. At first the teams traded goals from standards (CSKA responded to Douglas Santos' goal with an accurate shot by Matvey Kislyak), and towards the end they intrigued to the limit: in the 88th minute, Artem Shumansky put CSKA ahead, and in added time Alexander Sobolev saved Zenit from defeat in regulation time. Sobolev also started the penalty shootout successfully. As a result, Zenit did not miss once, deciding everything in four kicks.

The group stage of the Winline Winter Cup was completed by the meeting between Zenit and Rostov. The main surprise of the match was St. Petersburg's "tricks" with the starting lineup. First, the club's official Telegram channel posted a post that showed one option, and after a while the post was deleted and another appeared, in which only goalkeeper Evgeny Latyshonok remained from the original list. Sergei Semak called it a "misunderstanding in terms of filling out the protocol", noting that the coaching staff originally planned to use a completely different squad for the second match of the tournament, so that everyone could get game practice and get in shape without being overloaded.

"Rostov, on the other hand, is in some ways both easier and more difficult. On the one hand, there is nothing to surprise the opponent and everyone continues to uniformly gain form. On the other hand, the depth of the bench leaves much to be desired.

In the end, all those Zenit players who were featured in the first version of the post with the lineup did indeed take the field, but in the second half. And before leaving at halftime, only Ilzat Akhmetov managed to capitalize on his chance, opening the scoring from Andrei Mostovoy's cross. At the end of the second half Zenit doubled their lead, and it was Maxim Glushenkov and Luciano Gondu, who came on after the break. The Russian made a graceful pass behind the Rostov defenders from deep, and the Argentine picked up the ball and shot into the far corner of the goal from the penalty area. Rostov only managed to respond with a goal from 17-year-old Maxim Radchenko.

But Zenit's most expensive newcomer, Luis Enrique, is still not fully playing for the €33 million spent on him. He shoots, feints, tries, but so far without any productive actions. Let's write it off as adaptation. But by the resumption of the championship they will obviously expect more from the expensive Brazilian.

What do we have?

On February 10, two matches will take place within the Winline RPL Winter Cup. Fifth place will be contested between Rostov and Dynamo, and third place will be contested between CSKA and Krasnodar. The cherry on the cake will be the final match, in which the historically principal rivals - Zenit and Spartak - will fight for the trophy.

It is highly likely that on February 11 we will see Sobolev's first meeting with his former team. What is not a reason to watch the game?