Zenit St Petersburg and Lokomotiv Moscow draw 1-1 in a game that sets up a thrilling end to the season of the Russian Premier League with just two rounds to go.

 

Jose Rondon opened the scoring for the blue side (you can watch the goal here) and it looked like Zenit would secure a clear lead but a slip by Yury Lodygin allowed Sergey Tkachev to equalize both the score and the chances for the title (you can watch his goal here).

 

The tie also played into the hands of CSKA Moscow which is placed third, with just one point behind Lokomotiv. Leonid Slutsky, who is marking his 43rd birthday today, must be happy that his side managed to stay on top despite a tough period earlier in the season. Two days ago CSKA thrashed Amkar Perm 3-1.

 

Elsewhere, Dynamo Moscow beat Rostov 3-2 to remain fourth while Spartak continued to slide downward by losing to Tom 1-2. It’s Spartak’s third consecutive loss, with just one victory in the nine games of the spring period.

 

Spartak’s acting coach Dmitry Gunko has failed to reverse the trend. His predecessor Valery Karpin was fired after two losses in matches against Terek Grozny in the Premier League and Tosno Leningrad Region, a club from the second division, in the Russian Cup. The team’s owner, Leonid Fedun, complained the chances for the title were gone despite the fact that Karpin had all he had wanted.

 

With 46 points, Krasnodar moved past Volga Nizhny Novgorod to retain its lead position in the chase group, firmly seated behind Dynamo Moscow.

 

Sources: http://www.sovsport.ru