After the dramatic Moscow derby, another bright event awaited Russian football fans on Saturday – Krasnodar hosted Lokomotiv. Vladimir Ivic’s team entered this game with additional motivation: shortly before Ural won in Kaliningrad and rose to first place in the standings. The lead had to be returned, so the home team immediately tried to take the ball under their control.
It didn’t happen right away. For the first twenty minutes, the Muscovites, who endured the Krasnodar heat clearly worse than their rivals, defended quite confidently. And the blow of Alexander Chernikov, although not without difficulty, was repelled by Ilya Lantratov. The Southerners had their first real chance to score at halfway through the half. And immediately, as they say, almost one hundred percent. It was not without difficulty that Volkov stopped the ball in the opponent’s area, but in the end, the Lokomotiv goalkeeper had to bring down Sergei. Evgeny Kukulyak’s consultation with the VAR room was short-lived – the main referee did not even go to the monitor.
The one who started the acute episode at the gates of Lantratov, Eduard Spertsyan, went to carry out the sentence. And after a few moments, the fans of the hosts exhaled disappointment. The leader of the Krasnodar attacks managed to outwit the main specialist of our championship in repelling penalties, but at the same time he missed the target.
Photo source: FC Krasnodar
This unfortunate mistake only provoked the southerners. Attacks on Lokomotiv’s goal followed one after another, but Krasnodar’s attackers always lacked precision in the final stage. In turn, the guests at the creation did not elaborate almost nothing. Several good breakthroughs in the performance of the young Sergey Pinyaev ended in nothing. The teams went into the break with zeros on the scoreboard.
But the second part began with a storm of positive emotions in the stands. Already in the first attack after returning from the locker room, Krasnodar finally turned their advantage into a goal. Batchy hit into the far corner, Lantratov barely reached the ball, but Ilzat Akhmetov was the first to rebound, who only had to not miss the empty target.
After that, Vladimir Ivic’s team continued to attack out of inertia, and Lokomotiv urgently needed to change something. The appearance on the field of the main joker of the railway workers at the beginning of this season, Nair Tiknizyan, slightly refreshed the game of Muscovites. But with shots on goal, the guests still did not go well. The ball stubbornly did not even get into the hands of Matvey Safonov.
Photo source: RIA Novosti
However, the capital’s players did not lose hope of saving the game. But his attempts to create danger at the gates of Krasnodar seemed more like ill-organized chaos than the appearance of a decisive assault. In turn, the home team defended methodically, without letting go of their opponents in positions from which, theoretically at least, it is possible to deliver an accurate and powerful blow. Yes, the advantage of Vladimir Ivic’s team in terms of points was shaky, but in general it was clear that only some kind of miracle could help Lokomotiv write a point in the standings.
And it happened at the last minute compensated by the main referee. Anton Miranchuk brought the Muscovites an equalizer with his well-aimed shot. Which they, in general, did not deserve. 1:1 – “Krasnodar” loses the first points in the championship and now shares the first line with “Ural”.
