CSKA Moscow dragged themselves back into the title race at the weekend with a hard-fought 2-1 win over league leaders and reigning champions Rubin in Kazan.
A win for Rubin would have left CSKA 10 points off top spot, and things seemed to be going the Kazan side`s way when Argentine star Alejandro Dominguez slammed home a penalty in the 55th minute.
However, Rubin`s defense was exposed as the game entered its final stretch, first Sergei Ignashevich powering in a header from a corner in the 76th minute and then Brazilian striker Vagner Love repeating the trick, nodding past a mass of players three minutes later.
The win moves CSKA up to fourth, four points behind Rubin with a game in hand.
FC Moskva reclaimed outright second place with a 4-1 win over south Russian club Kuban after Spartak Moscow could only draw at home with Krilya Sovetov, a late, late Vladimir Bystrov run and shot earning the Red and Whites a point after Belarusian midfielder Timofei Kalachev had given the guests the lead in the first half.
Another late goal decided things in Grozny, Terek`s Bulgarian defender Valentin Iliev crashing a half-volley into the net in the 89th minute to give the home side a 3-2 win after Zenit had come back from 2-0 down.
West Siberian side Tom Tomsk celebrated news that their financial troubles would seem to be over after a deal with local energy companies was agreed on by hammering struggling Khimki 4-0 at home, the win moving them up to 11th.
Dynamo Moscow fired a warning shot to Champions League opponents Celtic with a 2-1 win over Spartak Nalchik in the Russian capital, forward Alexander Kerzhakov earning the three points with a powerful header in the 89th minute.
Russian News
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