Kings Kazan

November 4, 2008

When you mention Russian football, the majority of people will think of the Moscow teams CSKA, Lokomotiv, Dinamo and Spartak. In the past year we have seen the rise of Zenit from St. Petersburg who became only the second team outside Moscow to win the Russian Premier-Liga title.

But a team from Tatarstan celebrated their 50th anniversary in style on Sunday by winning a first Russian Premier-Liga title.

Tatarstan Tsars

Rubin Kazan, are a team who do not have a glittering history in Soviet or Russian football, and only made their top-flight debut in 2003 and had not previously improved on their third position that year. Following CSKA’s home derby loss to Lokomotiv, Rubin could take the title with three games to go if they could win away at Saturn. It took a last-gasp goal to secure the deciding 2-1 victory by the experienced team led by Turkmenistan born Kurban Berdyev.

A tenth place finish in 2007, just three points off the relegation zone, Rubin were not among the favourites during the close season, with their sole big signing being 32-year-old international attacking midfielder Sergei Semak.
Yet as the deadline approached, Rubin added experience via the likes of Premier League veterans Savo Milošević and Sergiy Rebrov, plus Turkey playmaker Gökdeniz Karadeniz, and with a reported budget of over £30m provided by leading Tatarstan-based firms, suddenly the Kazan side were outside-contenders.

Despite having an impressive budget, the signings made were not in the league of Zenit’s Danny Alves, who cost around £24m, or the Russian internationals and Brazilians of the Moscow big boys. So Rubin were just about Dark horses, they had a successful start to the season, not dropping a point in their first seven games. The impressive run of seven wins included defeating defending champions Zenit and thus beating the previous record run of six wins held by Dynamo.

After the great start the bubble was due to burst, and did so with a summer slump, where the Kazan team had a run of six successive draws and a number of losses. However, Rubin survived the blip and not even CSKA’s own seven-match winning streak could block their route to the ‘09/’10 Champions League.

It was former Aston Villa striker Milošević (who was fondly dubbed Miss-a-lot-ovic by the Holte faithful), who scored the late winner after coming on as substitute at half time. Rubin had taken the lead in the 76th minute only to be swiftly pegged back only four minutes later, but the Serbian forward sealed the championship on the 89th.

Semak, captain of club and country who had also won the league with CSKA, said: “This season we have produced the most consistent football in Russia and deserved to be champions.”

So with the ageing squad, who have to wait another 10 months until they can start their Champions League campaign it may be too much to hope that they can take Europe by storm the way they have their homeland.
Coach Berdyev knows though, that next autumn’s challenge will demand a fresh approach. “To be successful in the Champions League we need to strengthen two or three positions,” said Berdyev. ‘We need good centre-forwards, holding midfielders, a winger and a playmaker. I am sure some day we will cause a surprise in Europe too.”

rubinkazan