(End of Season Update) November 2014
Dinamo Moscow 1-1 Lokomotiv Moscow
Juninho (47)
On reflection, we were probably a bit negative today. Dinamo Moscow are currently 3rd from bottom, and if we really went for it we probably could have won the game. It looked like we were going to when Juninho gave us the lead, but their equaliser shortly before the hour mark was the signal for the game to fizzle out.
Lokomotiv Moscow 0-0 Rubin
It was important we didn’t lose today, as Rubin would have leapfrogged us in the table, but we had a fantastic opportunity to win the game after 76 minutes. We were awarded a penalty, but Rios’s spot kick was saved. Just four minutes later, it got even worse, as Roman Vorobjov was dismissed for a second bookable offense, and the game ended goalless.
Zenit 2-1 Lokomotiv Moscow
O.G. (28)
Zenit took an early lead through Alessandro Rosina, the player I voted for player of the year. Twelve minutes later, Alan Hutton gifted us an equaliser when he turned the ball into his own net. Soon after our equaliser, Zenit took the lead again, and we could never recover. It was a disappointing result as it means we fall to sixth place.
Lokomotiv Moscow 1-0 Spartak Moscow
Celsinho (pen 74)
We created a lot of chances in this Moscow derby, but it took a penalty to break the deadlock. It was a great win against a very good team that puts us above them and into a Euro Cup place. It was tense as Celsinho placed the ball on the spot, as it was at almost the exact same time as Rios missed a penalty at 0-0 against Rubin. But the young centre-back kept his nerve and gave us the derby win.
Moscow 0-1 Lokomotiv Moscow
Miroshnychenko (27)
It was a good performance and a good victory, but it could have been a lot more convincing. We created five clear cut chances and had two goals wrongfully dissalowed. When Dujmovic was sent off after 56 minutes, I thought we might have conceded an equaliser, but we continued to dominate the match.
So a fantastic end to the season moved us up to 3rd place, the highest we had been since the 3rd week of the season. And with it, we have qualified for next season’s Euro Cup. We actually finished the season unbeaten at home, and only lost three matches away from home, but our 12 draws (the most out of any team) cost us. Although CSKA Moscow and Zenit both had fantastic seasons, and another season our record may have been enough to nick second.
Just a few days after the end of the season, I resigned from my post as manager of Lokomotiv Moscow. I think I did a decent job, without setting the world alight. When I took over, the club were 8th half way through the season. We finished 7th, and then in my first full season we finished 3rd, and only went out of the Euro Cup to Manchester United. Here is a summary of my time in Russia:
I still feel it was the right decision, as I never really completely settled in Russia, and I didn’t bring in a single new coach. I was very pleased with my signings, however, and it will be tough to part with players like Juninho and Celsinho. But the fact those two players were having trouble settling in convinced me I had no real future in Moscow.
So I now start the process of job hunting for the fourth time. I was being linked with various jobs in Argentina throughout last season, and that looks like a very possible destination. Strangely, I was also linked with the Barcelona job, should Guardiola decide to let his contract run out at the end of the season. But we will just have to wait and see.