Both Moscow clubs approached the head-to-head meeting as neighbors in the standings. This proximity certainly does not please the fans of the teams: in late autumn they never expected to see them in sixth and seventh lines. A victory in this game allowed us to make a breakthrough close to the top three.

Last season for Spartak was marked by total dominance over Lokomotiv: Abascal’s team won all four matches: two in the championship and two in the Cup.

On Sunday, the Spartak team failed to extend their winning streak in the derby with their fellow countrymen.

Abascal in its repertoire

Abascal would not be Abascal if he had not again surprised with the choice of the starting lineup. The main surprise was the absence of Alexander Sobolev, whom the Spaniard chose to leave on the bench. There was no clear explanation for this decision in the pre-match interview: “We have many players capable of playing in attack,” the coach said. The attacking group was left without a classic center forward, and the attacking quartet consisted of Medina, Zinkovsky, Ignatov, and Promes, who had recovered from an injury.

The center of defense was of great concern in the absence of the disqualified Babich. The situation was complicated by the injury of Dzhikia, who suffered a rib injury a week ago. The Serbian had to be replaced by Nikita Chernov, who played only 21 minutes in the RPL this season, coming on as a late substitute twice.

Mikhail Galaktionov, unlike his colleague, did not make sudden movements. A relative surprise was the return to the full-back position of Tiknizyan, who this season often played closer to the attack. Dziuba acted in his usual place in the center of the attack, for whom the matches against Spartak are of particular importance. At the beginning of the year, in two cup matches, he did not score any goals against his home club in 180 minutes, which only added to his motivation.

At the beginning of the game there was no reason to remember Dziuba. Spartak took control of the ball and tried to find weak spots in the hosts’ defense. If there were no problems with advancing towards the opponent’s goal, things were not so good with the creation of dangerous moments. Perhaps the “red-whites” lacked that very tip of the spear in the person of Sobolev. Without him, there were very few specifics ahead.

Barrier from Khlusevich

The guests’ initial surge did not last long. Loko managed to level the game and move the ball away from their goal. For fans of tactics, the game looked extremely interesting, but the vast majority of the public was definitely not satisfied with the picture on the field. In defense, the teams acted as disciplined as possible, and the cost of a mistake increased with every minute. As a result, in chess terms, Spartak was the first to blunder.

The main event of the first half was the removal of Khlusevich. It all started with Duarte losing the ball in the center of the field, after which Miranchuk rushed forward, passed to Dzyuba and immediately received a return pass in touch. The Loko player was running one on one with Maksimenko, but ran into a barrier from the Spartak defender right in front of the penalty area. The main referee of the matches, Pavel Kukuyan, recorded the violation and, after a short pause, showed Khlusevich a red card.

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In the second RPL match in a row, Spartak remained in the minority, but if Babich in Voronezh was sent off in the 70th minute, then this time ten men had to play more than half. At the same time, Abascal did not immediately release an additional defender, but waited for the break and made a choice in favor of Moses.

Fire time

At the beginning of the second half, it was difficult to believe that Lokomotiv was playing in the majority. The Spartak players did not think of clinging to their goal, but acted from a position of strength. In the end, the courage was rewarded in the 53rd minute. Prutsev’s activity in someone else’s penalty area came as a surprise to the railway workers, allowing the midfielder to make an accurate pass to Promes, who rolled the ball under Zinkovsky’s shot.

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The hosts had a chance to win back very soon: Dzyuba brought Fasson, who had joined the attack, into the striking position, but Chernov was momentarily ahead of him. A little later, the same Dzyuba almost scored a cross from the corner. This development forced Abascal to release an additional destroyer in the center of the field, sacrificing Ignatov, who was replaced by Martins.

Loko continued to increase the pressure, and Spartak’s defense eventually couldn’t stand it. Glushenkov went straight through the center and, while falling, managed to push the ball through to Dzyuba. The Spartak graduate dealt with Maksimenko, scoring the eighth goal in his career and the first goal in 2.5 years against the “red-whites”.

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In the end, Spartak again became bolder and continued to seek its fortune at the other team’s goal, risking missing a dangerous attack on its own. The game went without a middle field, which only added to the spectacle. In the final minutes, the opponents managed to exchange killer chances: first, substitute Rybchinsky missed his chance, firing wide of the target from a few meters away. Later, it was Promes’ turn to forgive the goalkeeper, who failed to take advantage of another great pass from Prutsev.

No team deserved to lose in this game, so a draw was a fair outcome of a great derby. Cherchesov was probably pleased with the spectacle. Abascal has nothing to be happy about: his team managed to win only once in the last five matches of the championship.

WORLD RPL. 14th round

“Lokomotiv” (Moscow) – “Spartak” (Moscow) – 1:1 (0:0)

Goals: Dziuba, 63 (VIDEO). — Zinkovsky, 53 (VIDEO).

Removal: Khlusevich, 38.