Russian Football News

This week on the pod, Richard takes over hosting duties and he is joined by Football Radar's Anna Konovalova. Anna is a Moscow-native Spartak fan and an expert in Russian, German and Austrian football. Follow Anna on Twitter: @iamanch @FRFussballAnna @HexenkesselPod - Anna's pod on German football in Russian Thus, the pair discuss the swathes of German specialists taking over at RPL clubs, discuss parallels between Austrian & Russian football and evaluate the Hypercube reforms suggesting following that of the Austrian Bundesliga, and finish off with evaluating all the big events of the past week including; Rui Vitoria's sacking, Paolo Vanoli's arrival at Spartak and all the action from the Dynamo - Zenit match at the top of the table. RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week on the pod, it's a red & white takeover as James is joined by Hanu & Alexey to discuss Spartak's second-ever European Group Table-Topping campaign before checking out the rest of the midweek European results. Hanu - @H4nuu & @PodcastWTI Alexey - @loonyspectre Timestamps 00:00 - Intro 04:15 - Spartak's Table-Topping European Campaign 32:34 - Zenit's draw against Chelsea 50:40 - Lokomotiv's Disappointing Campaign 1:06:35 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

On David's last pod before his Christmas vacation, we take a look at what to expect from Tomas Zorn in his "new" role at Lokomotiv and ask whether or not Ralf Rangnick still exerts his influence at the club from afar. We also review all the latest in the RPL and take a look back at the FNL Winter part of the season as a whole with their break already underway. Timestamps: 01:24 - Zorn's "New" Role 20:48 - FNL Winter Review 37:02 - RPL Action 37:10 - Khimki 3-3 Krasnodar 40:13 - Arsenal 3-1 Lokomotiv 45:08 - Rubin 2-3 Dynamo 52:13 - News in Brief 57:03 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week, Rich returns as we all dissect the midweek European games involving Russian sides as Spartak defeat Napoli again. Then, we quickly look at Russia's opponents in the WC 2022 Playoffs draw before delving deep into Ralf Rangnick's time at Lokomotiv & impending move to Manchester United. Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro 03:05 - Malmo 1-1 Zenit 14:11 - Spartak 2-1 Napoli 33:06 - Lokomotiv 0-3 Lazio 37:00 - 2022 World Cup Playoff Draw 40:18 - Rangnick to Manchester United 58:51 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

James & David focus on the Sbornaya Senior, U21 & U19 squads in an International Football special. We do dive into the RPL right at the end but as the last game week was almost 2 weeks ago now that is old hat, as David stans Karpin & Gladyshev for 20 minutes instead. Timestamps: Intro - 00:00 Sbornaya - 01:10 U21s - 18:17 U19s - 37:18 RPL Catch-Up - 43:49 Outro - 55:51 RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

It was a mixed week in Europe this time out, as Zenit lost to Juve while Lokomotiv and Spartak drew with Galatasary and Leicester respectively away from home. We also take another look at the upcoming Russia squad and recap all of the RPL Round 13 Action from the last week. Also, apologies for James' sore throat this week, blame him for going to two away games and shouting at Sunderland for losing 5-1 & 3-0 in them... Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 00:50 - European Matches Roundup 02:10 - Juve 4-2 Zenit 09:01 - Galatasary 1-1 Lokomotiv 15:33 - Leicester 1-1 Spartak 25:40 - League Coefficients 30:24 - Karpin's Russia Squad Reduced to 30 37:48 - RPL Round 13 38:36 - Rubin 1-0 CSKA 41:30 - Arsenal 1-2 Sochi 45:16 - Krasnodar 0-1 Krylia 49:02 - Zenit 4-1 Dynamo 52:34 - News in Brief 54:51 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

James & Richard deep-dive into the big game of the weekend as Zenit defeated Spartak 7-1 & covered the rest of the RPL games before exploring the gargantuan 41-man Russia squad. Timestamps: 00:57 - Zenit 7-1 Spartak 25:01 - CSKA 3-1 Krylia 34:50 - Akhmat 1-0 Ural 38:59 - Dinamo v Zenit Preview 47:06 - Karpin's 41-man Squad 59:51 - Russian Cup Next Round 01:00:30 - "Shomurodov" Controversy 01:02:17 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

We look back at a d disappointing week in Europe as Spartak lost 4-3 to Leicester, Zenit fell 1-0 to a late Dejan Kulusevski goal for Juve and Lokomotiv also conceded late in a 1-0 loss against Galatasary. We also unpack all the RPL action from last weekend. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:31 - Spartak 3-4 Leicester 19:18 - Zenit 0-1 Juventus 33:36 - Lokomotiv 0-1 Galatasary 49:40 - RPL Round 11 01:13:02 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week, we discuss the Russia games, Richard writes a biography of Markus Gisdol, David waxes lyrical about some players nobody has heard of before and James forgets how league tables work in a hectic end to the pod. Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro 02:20 - Russia 1-0 Slovakia 14:34 - Slovenia 1-2 Russia 25:02 - Russia U21 Matches 32:38 - Markus Gisdol in at Lokomotiv 48:47 - Latest FNL Action 59:03 - PFL Broken Website 01:02:02 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

James & David cover all the latest goings-on in Russian Football, mainly Lokomotiv & Marko Nikolic parting ways, analysing a weekend of upsets in the RPL before discussing the cavalcade of changes that engulfed Valery Karpin's Russia squad in the past two weeks. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:18 - Nikolic Leaves Loko 23:03 - Loko 1-2 Rostov 28:27 - Rubin 0-1 Nizhny 35:50 - Dynamo 0-1 Krylia 42:23 - CSKA 0-0 Krasnodar 48:39 - Zenit 1-2 Sochi 57:28 - Russia Squad Changes 01:08:50 - Pryadkin Resigns as RPL President 01:12:24 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week, James & David are joined by Hanu from the Whatever This Is Podcast to discuss all the midweek European games involving Russian clubs. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 02:10 - Zenit 4-0 Malmo 18:05 - Napoli 2-3 Spartak 43:18 - Lazio 2-0 Loko 01:00:46 - Russia U21s & RPL Keepers 01:10:00 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

We return to the top of the RPL this week to discuss the biggest games from last weekend's action, including CSKA's victory in the Main-Moscow Derby. We also cast an eye over Zenit's victory over Rubin, Dynamo's defeat of Sochi and the latest Russian National Team squad. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01 30 - Sochi v Dynamo 18:25 - Rubin v Zenit 29:01 - Spartak V CSKA 41:45 - Russia Squad 54:20 - Russian Cup Results 55:35 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

Attention turns to European matters this week, as the UCL & UEL Group Stages return. We have fingers in more pies than a leper in a cookery class as Zenit travelled to Chelsea while Spartak & Lokomotiv hosted Legia and Marseille in Moscow respectively. We'll discuss all of that including a special guest appearance at the end. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:47 - Chelsea 0-1 Zenit 24:13 - Spartak 0-1 Legia 48:35 - Loko 1-1 Marseille 01:03:22 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

After taking our own short international break last week we are reconvening here to discuss all three of Russia's recent WC qualifying games - the first three under new boss Valery Karpin. Then, take a look at how the U21s faired in their two games & ahead of the return of the RPL this weekend and after deadline day yesterday shall summarise the entire window as a whole. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:10 - Russia 0-0 Croatia 07:20 - Cyprus 0-2 Russia 11:40 - Captaincy Debate 21:12 - Russia 2-0 Malta 29:00 - Russia U21s 45:00 - Transfer Window Summary RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

On this week's pod, we record earlier than scheduled - with the RPL games brought forward to Thursday & Friday at the behest of Valery Karpin in order to have more training time with his Sbornaya squad in the upcoming international break. We discuss all the latest RPL action as Dynamo top the league for the first time in years, get all the latest lowdown on transfers and start off with all the juicy information regarding the foreigner limit after the RPL clubs met in the week. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:14 - Foreigner Limit Proposals & Decisions(?) 17:30 - Transfer News & Speculation 39:50 - Dynamo Top the RPL 44:05 - CSKA under Berezutskiy 2 49:52 - Ufa hold Zenit 56:30 - Cordoba @ Krasnodar & Loko win 1:02:25 - Worst Foreign Players in the RPL 1:12:05 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com Medium - Russian Football News

This week on the pod, we discuss the squads for both the Sbornaya and U21 teams for the upcoming national break - the first under new boss Valery Karpin. Recap all the latest in the RPL before rounding off with a quick look over the Hypercube Reform proposals. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:30 - Karpin's First Sbornaya Squad 14:10 - U21 Squad 23:45 - Loko v Zenit 29:18 - Krasnodar v Arsenal 34:19 - CSKA v Rostov 39:01 - Nizhny v Ufa 44:00 - Carl Starfelt @ Celtic 45:29 - RFU x Hypercube Reforms 1:13:40 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com Medium - Russian Football News

This week, the pod team explore all the European fixtures that involved Russian sides (spoilers, it was as disappointing as you'd expect) before rounding up all the RPL action and summer news from those we missed out on last week. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 02:03 - Partizan Belgrade v Sochi 07:30 - Rubin Kazan v Rakow Czestochowa 17:40 - Benfica v Spartak Moscow 31:15 - CSKA & Khimki 35:50 - Loko & Krasnodar 45:15 - Akhmat 50:20 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com Medium - Russian Football News

First of all, apologies for a no-show last week as some very late emergencies came up & made recording in time for the Friday RPL games impossible. But we are back this week to discuss all the recent RPL action, cast over who Sochi & Rubin were drawn against in the Europa Conference League and discuss the Valery Karpin debacle as he is given the Sbornaya job, agreeing to work with both Rostov and the national team only to then leave his role as Rostov boss after two successive defeats. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:56 - RPL Recap So Far 40:25 - Conference League Draw & Next Round 48:29 - Karpin @ Sbornaya - Semin @ Rostov 01:00:51 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com Medium - Russian Football News

The RFN Pod team reconvenes just in time for the new season, as we are back just in time for some RPL and European Conference League action. We cast an eye over Sochi's 3-0 win in their Europa Conference League Second Qualification Round First Leg victory over Kesla. The FNL also started two weeks ago but due to some various vacation commitments unfortunately we were not able to record so we will also recap on some of that action before finishing off looking at all the big RPL transfers in the short summer break. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:19 - Sochi 3-0 Kesla 18:15 - The start of the FNL Season 36:04 - RPL Summer Transfers 55:40 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com Medium - Russian Football News

This week, James & David are joined by a special guest. That guest is none other than the former Editor-in-Chief of RFN - the Great Dane himself - Toke Theilade. The pair discuss Russia's Euros in general, focus on the 4-1 defeat to Denmark, and the emotional impact of Christian Eriksen's cardiac arrest & subsequent recovery upon the Danish nation & team. Timestamps: Introduction - 00:00 Russia 1-4 Denmark - 02:30 Outro - 45:10 RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

First of all, apologies for the technical issues. Luckily we got to the crux of the issue, but could not unfortunately salvage James' track, which is still suffering from some distortion. Russia finally secured their first win at a European Championships since 2012 with a well-controlled 1-0 victory over Finland. Aleksey Miranchuk was the difference between the two, as James & David are joined by Mark and Rich of the Finnish Football Show website & podcast. Give the lads a follow & check their work out at: • Finnish Football Show Podcast on all your favourite platforms • @FCSuomi on Twitter • finnishfootballshow.com Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro 01:35 - Finland 0-1 Russia in Review 35:22 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

We're back for the Euros, as James & Rich are joined by Ben Jackson of the Belgian Football Podcast to review the opening match of Group B for Russia, as they lost 3-0 at home to Belgium in St Petersburg. Follow Ben @benjack94 and the Belgian Football Podcast @BelgianPodcast on Twitter! Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 04:50 - Review of Russia 0-3 Belgium 47:10 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week, James, David & Rich celebrate the end of the RPL 2020/21 season by selecting our individual team of best players. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 02:31 - Goalkeeper 08:20 - Defence 29:10 - Central Midfield 37:05 - Attacking Midfield 58:34 - Forwards 1:08:01 - News in Brief & Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

James & David reconvene to evaluate this season's best FNL players, handing out some awards and discussing who else impressed over the course of the year. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:30 - Player of the Season 06:46 - Player of the Season who is not Ivan Sergeev 15:12 - Young Player of the Season 26:10 - Manager of the Season 32:48 - Biggest Surprise (Team or Player) 40:30 - Best Signing 44:00 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week, James, David & Rich celebrate the end of the RPL 2020/21 season by handing out our various awards of the season, both good and bad. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 02:58 - Player of the Season 07:29 - Young Player of the Season 15:12 - Manager of the Season 29:58 - Surprise (Player or Team) of the Season 40:23 - Best Signing 46:00 - Worst Signing 52:43 - Best Moment of the Season 59:45 - Worst Moment of the Season 01:03:30 - Goal of the Season 01:08:34 - The Most Leonid Slutsky Moment of Leonid Slutsky's Career 01:20:17 - The Most Bankrupt Club of the Last Decade 01:27:54 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week on the pod, James, David and Rich analyse the Cup of Russia final as Lokomotiv won their 4th in just the last 6 years, cast an eye over the latest Russia squads both at a senior and U21 level and look ahead to the final game week of the season with two European spots and one automatic relegation place still to be determined. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:45 - Loko beat Krylia in the Russian Cup Final 20:49 - Sbornaya Squad Analysis 43:04 - Game of the Week & Final Round Ramifications 01:02:13 - This Week's News 01:06:00 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week on the pod, James, David and Rich celebrate Zenit's third RPL title victory in a row, take a look at the debacle surrounding the FNL promotion race as only one of the top six were granted an RPL license and finish off discussing the rumours around Spartak's potential new head coach, with Rui Vitoria the current frontrunner. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:30 - Zenit's Triple Title 19:38 - FNL to RPL Licensing Debacle 46:20 - Is Rui Vitoria the man to replace Tedesco at Spartak? 58:07 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week on the RFN Podcast, the usual team discussed the race for the final European spot, as Rubin, Sochi, CSKA and Dynamo all sit level on 46 points as they battle for Conference League qualification. Then, we explore all the recent games in the FNL before finishing off with a deep-dive into Ufa's recent semi-resurgence under Aleksei Stukalov. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:44 - Race for Europe 24:08 - Last week's FNL Action 38:05 - Stukalov's Early work at Ufa 49:50 - Outro & Socials RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

In a bumper episode of the pod, we explore some more eclectic aspects of football of late. RPL action took place as usual at the weekend, but midweek we also saw the Cup of Russia semi-finals and the world has been gripped by the Super League controversy. To cover all that and more are James Nickels, Richard Pike, and Misha Polenov of Match TV. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 02:10 - Lokomotiv's 10th win in a row 11:02 - Dynamo ease past Rotor 14:28 - Krasnodar & Zenit share the spoils 19:45 - Refereeing in Russia 26:40 - Sochi beat CSKA in the race for Europe 30:40 - Ufa embarrass Spartak 45:36 - Loko steams towards the Cup final 52:11 - FNL Krylia beats Akhmat in the other semi 01:04:26 - The "Russian Position" on the Super League 01:09:25 - General thoughts on the ESL 1:20:50 - How the ESL could affect the RPL 01:30:20 - The Long-Term Ramifications 01:45:00 - Latest News in Russian Football 01:46:11 - Outro & Socials RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week on the RFN Podcast, the usual team take stock of the entire RPL. With 5 games left to go in the season, we run down how the sides in the respective league battles are fairing. Before finishing David and Richard run down some recent FNL action and then James runs down the big news of the week. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 00:50 - Zenit running away with it? 05:20 - Moscow Derby & Title Race Repercussions 14:56 - The Final European Spot 31:50 - Boring Mid-Table Stuff 42:05 - Relegation Battle 45:15 - FNL Highlights 51:12 - News Roundup 55:26 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week, James and David are joined by none other than the voice of Russian Football in English, Alexey Yaroshevsky. We go through all the weekend's action, including the twin resignations of Rashid Rakhimov and Murad Musaev, the latter's replacement at Krasnodar in the shape of a certain Viktor Goncharenko, the Race for Europe, Lokomotiv's resurgence since the resumption after the winter break and Yaro answers all your questions and more. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:20 - Yaro's work on Russian Football and TV 03:15 - Musaev's resignation & Goncharenko at Krasnodar 20:40 - Rashid Rakhimov leaves Ufa 33:28 - Olic's early games at CSKA 36:50 - The Title Race 41:44 - Rubin Corner 45:58 - Loko's Winning Streak 50:59 - Ribalta leaves Zenit 51:50 - RFN x Yaro Mailbag 01:11:30 - Outro & Socials RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

We round-up the international break this week, taking a look at Russia's latest World Cup Qualifiers as Artem Dzyuba nears Aleksandr Kherzhakov's goal record & David monologues about Russian U21 football for 4 hours. We also discuss the burgeoning talent of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia as the rest of the world begins to take notice, before finishing off with a discussion for the potential future of Nikolai Larin after he stood down as Director at Chertanovo Moscow. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:51 - Russia's games against Slovenia & Slovakia 21:30 - Khvicha v Spain 29:10 - Russia U21 crash out of the Euros 48:10 - Larin leaves Chertanovo 57:12 - Outro & Socials RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

On the latest RFN Podcast, the RPL takes a break as we take a look at Russia's 3-1 over Malta in World Cup 2022 Qualifying, cast our eyes over the future of the National Team as Russia U21s fly out the blocks in their opening game of the U21 European Championships, we cover the usual FNL action and then finish off with some domestic coverage as CSKA Moscow announced the sacking of Viktor Goncharenko & hiring of club legend Ivica Olic as his replacement. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:17 - Dzyuba 3 off the record as Russia win 09:10 - Zakharyan, Chalov & co thrash Iceland U21s 25:05 - FNL Round-Up 41:04 - Olic replaces Goncharenko at CSKA 55:00 - Outro & Socials RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

On this week's pod, James, Richard & Hanu catch up on the latest RPL action - casting an eye over the title battle, race for Europe and relegation. Then, the trio analyses Stani Cherchesov's latest Russia squad before delving into your questions in the latest Mailbag, including reform, exciting youngsters, doping in Russia and BLM. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:50 - Title Race 28:15 - Who will qualify for Europe? 41:00 - Relegation Battle 44:01 - Russia Squad Analysis 49:28 - RFN Mailbag 1:24:30 - Outro, Socials & Whatever This Is RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week on the Russian Football News Podcast, the usual team casts their eye over the two big games from the weekend as Spartak demolished Krasnodar 6-1 and Rubin Kazan surprised league leaders Zenit with a 2-1 victory at home. They also cover Dynamo and CSKA's victories over Tambov and AKhmat respectively, before rounding off with a review of all the FNL action over the last two game weeks. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:17 - Rubin 2-1 Zenit 39: 40 - Spartak 6-1 Krasnodar 57:39 - Dinamo 2-0 Tambov 59:42 - CSKA 2-0 Akhmat 1:02:35 - FNL Summary 1:07:26 - News in Brief 1:09:20 - Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week, the regular team are joined by long-time RFN writer, Lokomotiv expert and meme extraordinaire Ilya Sokolov to discuss the return to action in the RPL, drop-down a tier to case an eye over FNL action before analysing the recent sexism controversy surrounding Andrei Kobelev. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:09 - Loko's derby loco 12:11 - Zakharyan's full debut @ Dinamo 16:40 - Rubin's excellent win v Spartak 25:10 - Details revealed on Shamil Gazizov's departure 28:50 - Konate + Khimki = Kool 35:09 - Sochi thrash Arsenal 38:30 - Krylia top the FNL 44:50 - Spartak Gogniev's Alania Brawl 47:52 - Chayka get going 50:00 - Volgar's new strikeforce off to a flyer 51:20 - Justice for Marx Lenin 53:15 - Artem Maksimenko's Ural debut 55:30 - Andrei Kobelev's sexist remarks 01:14:36 - Rest in peace, Yuri Albertovich Rozanov 01:16:25 - Ilya's Socials & Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

On the next RFN Podcast, we take a look over the big transfer news of the winter as Quincy Promes returns to Spartak, highlight Krylia Sovetov's impressive 4-0 win over Khimki to remain in the cup as the sole lower-league representatives, cast an eye over the Tambov winter crisis and analyse how they will remain in the RPL before then rounding out with a review of Krasnodar's Europa League loss against Dinamo Zagreb. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 01:30 - Russian Cup Last 16 Overview 02:08 - Arsenal Shoot Down Zenit 05:00 - Dynamo's Moscow Derby Spoils 09:31 - MASK: OFF, PROMES: ON 10:40 - Urunov Free of Spartak 15:50 - King Quincy (Again) 17:15 - Let's Talk about Ska 20:00 - Tambov are Back In Town - well, Saransk 38:10 - Krylia Flies the FNL Flag 42:20 - Krasnodar Falter against Dinamo Zareb 1:04:40 - Outro & Socials RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

On the latest RFN Podcast, James, David and Richard cast their minds back to the first half of the FNL season, and review all the action. After that, the trio previews Krasnodar's upcoming Europa League knockout match against Dinamo Zagreb. Timestamps 00:00 - Introduction 01:40 - FNL Winter Transfers 09:50 - Veles Firesale 14:20 - Krylia's Title Charge? 17:25 - Promotion Contenders 21:44 - Battle for Survival 28:11 - The two RPL "2" Sides 31:06 - Biggest Surprise 33:00 - Most Disappointing Side 36:00 - The Official W.T.I. FNL Frauds of 2020/21™ 37:50 - FNL Honourable Mentions 41:00 - Krasnodar v Dinamo Zagreb Preview 1:01:51 - RFN Clubhouse 1:02:20 - Outro & Socials RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week on the RFN Podcast, we return after our very own winter break as the RPL is about to return. Before it does, however, we get together to vote for our RPL Team of the Autumn from 2020/21. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction 02:19 - Goalkeeper 17:23 - Right Back 25:30 - Central Defence 41:50 - Left Back 44:45 - Defensive Midfield 51:57 - Attacking Midfield 52:40 - Wingers 71:10 - Striker 86:06 - Outro & Socials RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week on the RFN Podcast, we cover the last two game weeks of RPL action, including Zenit's 3-1 win over Spartak, Krasnodar thrashing Loko 5-0, Chalov scoring a hattrick and Khimki continuing their unbeaten run. Then we finish off by digging deep into the financial crisis enveloping Russian football as a result of the Coivd-19 pandemic. Timestamps: 01:30 - El Klassikov 25:20 - Chalov hattrick for CSKA 28:30 - Khimki defeat Loko 31:00 - Rotor leapfrog Arsenal 33:20 - Krasnodar 5-0 Loko 36:50 - Rostov consistently inconsistent 37:30 - Rubin's new signing 39:10 - Russian Football's Financial Crisis RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week on the RFN Podcast, we look back at the final round of UCL Group Stage Fixtures, including Krasnodar's impressive 1-1 draw with Chelsea in London, then move onto recapping the latest in the RPL, cast our eyes over some crazy stories regarding Ramzan Kadyrov and finish off by unpacking the long and tumultuous Shamil Gazizov saga at Spartak. Timestamps: 01:05 - Zenit lose at home to Dortmund 14:00 - Krasnodar's Point in London 22:15 - Loko go loco v Bayern 23:50 - Coefficient Standings 24:55 - The Battle at the Top of the RPL 29:30 - Rubin loss to Loko & General Progress 35:20 - Dinamo's Attacking Improvement under Schwarz 39:10 - Ufa's Re-awakening 43:40 - There's Something About Ramzan 47:00 - Gazizov Sacking RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

After almost an entire year, we finally have another win in the Champions League group stages as Krasnodar defeated Rennes at home on Wednesday evening. However, elsewhere Loko lost against Red Bull Salzburg and are effectively eliminated, while Zenit were trounced by Brugge. The RPL also hots up this week with three sides level at the top, Ufa pulled themselves from obscurity with a brilliant 4-0 win over Tambov, Ahmed Musa has been rumoured to return to CSKA and one of the weirdest penalties ever happened down in the FNL. Last, we will explore the potential resignation of Loko CEO/President Vasily Kiknadze, and what that may mean. To discuss all this and more, we have the usual RFN Pod team in James Nickels, David Sansun & Richard Pike. Timestamps: 01:25 - Loko's loss to Red Bull Salzburg 10:20 - Krasnodar through to the Europa League Knockouts 23:30 - Zenit's Worst-Ever UCL Campaign 30:00 - Foreigner Limit Issue's 43:30 - RPL Quick Kicks 46:00 - Vasiliy Kiknadze Sacked? RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week on the Russian Football News Podcast, James & David are joined by none other than Match TV Commentator, Pundit and Broadcaster Mikhail Polenov. The trio discusses the return of European Football since our last regular podcast, and it’s been quite the week. Lokomotiv battled hard to another brilliant result, drawing 0-0 away in Madrid, while Zenit and Krasnodar were both unfortunately eliminated from the Champions League after losses to Lazio and Sevilla respectively. We also have a Moscow Derby to unpack, some controversy surrounding Stanislav Cherchesov’s interview in which he vehemently lambasted players in his squad while defending his current record, and boardroom shuffles at Spartak. Timestamps: 01:00 - Introduction's & Misha's Podcasts 03:15 - Krasnodar 1-2 Sevilla 11:50 - Lazio 3-1 Zenit 21:00 - Atletico 0-0 Lokomotiv 35:20 - Oldest-Moscow Derby Analysis 36:00 - Spartak's Boardroom Shuffle? 40:35 - Rubin's Loss to Rostov 44:30 - Khimki Resurgent? 45:25 - Krasnodar v Tambov 47:08 - Talalaev @ Akhmat 50:10 - Cherchesov's Controverial Comments 1:09:15 - Next up on the Site & Socials RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

In our Fourth European Preview Special Episode of the RFN Podcast, your host James Nickels sits down with Rob van Elewout of the Kein Geloel Podcast to preview the upcoming Europa League game between CSKA Moscow and Feyenoord. RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week on the RFN Podcast, James Nickels, David Sansun and Richard Pike deep dive into one of Russia's worst and most embarrassing games in their recent history, the 5-0 loss to Serbia, and ask whether or not this should result in the end of Stanislav Cherchesov's tenure as team manager? We then open the RFN Mailbag once again, answering all your questions from foreigner limit to Dzyuba & the state of Football Journalism in the country. Timestamps: 01:14 - Should Stanislav Cherchesov be sacked? 25:10 - RFN Mailbag 26:10 - Why is the foreigner limit still in place? 29:35 - Is Kuchaev-Oblyakov-Akhmetov the future of Russia's midfield? 32:10 - What are your predictions for next week's European games? 35:29 - Will we ever see Denis Cheryshev's "breakthrough"? 38:25 - Is Sergei Yuran a genius or a fraud? 40:05 - Is Sbornaya underperforming? 41:58 - Could Cherchesov play himself in goal as age is now irrelevant? 45:25 - Will Artem Dzyuba leak more masturbation videos or create an OnlyFans page instead, and when will be allowed back in the team? 49:00 - Why is Russian Football so Traumatic? 49:30 - What do you think of the Russian sports media, any favourites or any you dislike? 1:03:30 - RFN Socials & Next up on the site. RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

On this week's RFN Podcast, James Nickels, Artem Makarevitch and Hanu Trivedi discuss Stani Cherchesov's team selection against Moldova and analyse Russia's 0-0 draw, look back at the RPL's crazy weekend including that certain Dzyuba incident, thrashings and surprise results & finish off with some Mid-Season Awards. Timestamps: 01:47 - Moldova 0-0 Russia Analysis 08:19 - RPL's Crazy Week Overview 09:55 - The Artem Dzyuba Incident 20:05 - Dynamo 5 - 1 Loko 29:40 - Musaev Resignation? 31:50 - Khimki's Shock Win over Rubin 32:45 - The Miranchuk Twin's Wholesome Content 34:30 - Mid-Season Review Overview 35:10 - Best Player 37:00 - Best Russian 39:43 - Best New Signing 42:40 - Best Manager 44:30 - Best Team 46:30 - Worst Signing 51:46 - Worst Team 53:10 - Biggest Surprise & Disappointment 56:15 - RFN Fun Fact & Socials RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

On Episode #76 of the RFN Podcast, your regular podcast team discusses all the latest in the three UCL games, and as we've missed out on some of CSKA's European exploits due to scheduling conflict's, focus on them as they top the RPL for the first time since September 2019. Timestamps: 01:30 - Loko's excellent draw with Atletico 19:26 - Zenit's European Issues 37:00 - Krasnodar lose in Sevilla 51:30 - CSKA's Table-Topping Exploits RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

In our Third European Preview Special Episode of the RFN Podcast, your host James Nickels sits down with Ricky Menendez of both Esto es Atleti, a weekly podcast on all things Los Rojiblancos, and Maneras De Vivir, a weekly Atleti radio show. We preview the Loko v Atleti game on Tuesday and discuss what the longer-term UCL aspirations are of each side. Timestamps: 01:30 - Atleti's UCL So Far 06:15 - Diego Simeone's Tactical Approach 12:45 - Luis Suarez & Lucas Torreira's Impact 16:30 - Diego Costa Injury 18:15 - Joao Felix's Huge Potential 21:00 - Loko's Team Play 23:40 - Atleti's Expectations 25:45 - Loko's Expectations 26:50 - Grzegorz Krychowiak - Dangerman? 27:40 - Predictions 30:00 - Socials & Outro RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week on the RFN Podcast, regulars James Nickels, David Sansun & Richard Pike deep dive into this week's European fixtures, including Loko's auspicious and gutsy performance against Bayern, Zenit stumbling to a 2-0 loss to Dortmund, a depleted Krasnodar shooting themselves in the foot against Chelsea and CSKA's inability to score v Dinamo Zagreb. We also finish off the pod with some quick kicks of RPL action, including looking at Domenico TedesGOAT's table-toppers and Rubin & Rotor's surprise wins over two of our Champions League sides. Then, we cover CSKA late on and offer some immediate reaction to their 0-0 draw with Dinamo Zagreb. Timestamps: 00:50 - Loko's auspicious performance v Bayern 12:31 - Krasnodar battered by star-studded Chelsea 28:04 - Zenit's Stumble in Germany 38:50 - Spartak's win at the weekend 40:05 - CSKA v Dinamo Zagreb 42:25 - Sandro Schwarz begins life at Dynamo 45:50 - Rotor's surprise win v Loko 47:10 - Rubin defeat Zenit 49:30 - Socials & Next up on the Site RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

In this special episode of the RFN Podcast, your usual host James Nickels sat down with Rob Pratley and Kirill Belskiy of SW6Daily to preview Krasnodar v Chelsea from the away sides' perspective. We discussed the Blues' European hopes for the season, Frank Lampard's first year and a bit as boss before deep-diving into the game and Roman Abramovich's continued ownership of the London side. Thanks again to Rob and Kirill, Check out SW6Daily and for any Russian Chelsea fans, Kirill also runs a Russian-speaking YouTube channel, Chelsea News. Timestamps: 1:50 - Chelsea 0-0 Sevilla 3:48 - Frank Lampard's Time as Chelsea Boss 9:10 - Chelsea Tactical Analysis 12:40 - Spending Spree at the Bridge 22:10 - The Blues' Dangermen 27:35 - Krasnodar's Biggest Threats 33:00 - Musaev Learning from the Past 37:20 - Abramovich's State of Affairs Running the Club 40:20 - Hammersmith & Chelsea Food Bank Details 41:50 - Chelsea's Expectations in the UCL 46:05 - Krasnodar's Expectations 48:50 - Score Predictions 51:00 - Situation in Belarus & Football's Impact 55:45 - SW6 Socials, Links & Info 56:40 - Kirill's Russian-Speaking Chelsea News YouTube Channel RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com

This week on the RFN Podcast, James Nickels, Richard Pike and Hanu Trivedi discuss the trio of Champions League games in which Krasnodar and Loko pick up respectable draws away while Zenit fails at home to Club Brugge, then they take some quick kicks around some of the notable RPL action. Timestamps: 1:25 - The Meme Lord Eder Strikes in Austria 12:41 - Krasnodar's Full-Back Party Pays Dividends 29:50 - Zenit's "frauds" lose against Brugge 53:00 - Spartak's dirty victory over Khimki 54:55 - CSKA Take the Spoils v Dynamo 57:00 - Semak's Big Week 58:00 - Wendel-vision 59:00 - Arsenal's New Guns 1:02:35 - Hanu's Big Trivia RFN Socials: Twitter - @RusFootballNews Instagram - rusfootballnews Youtube - Russian Football News Email - russianfootballnews1@gmail.com