Coach Leonid Slutsky voiced a strong sense of injustice over the removal of referee Yevgeny Kukulyak from his duties in the Russian Premier League and the Russian Cup, arguing that the decision did not reflect the value Kukulyak brings to the pitch. The tension rose during the Russian Cup quarter final in St. Petersburg, a clash between Zenit and Dynamo Moscow, when Kukulyak faced questions after a close play that could have produced an 11 meter penalty but did not after a review.
Slutsky described Kukulyak as a highly skilled official who reads game situations with precision, noting that the official recognizes when players and coaches are not acting out of personal vendettas. He acknowledged that mistakes happen but wondered why those entrusted with making crucial calls are judged most harshly. The coach characterized the firing decision as a mischaracterization that defies logic, remarks he shared on the Youtube channel Comment.Show following the match.
In the Zenit versus Dynamo match, Kukulyak opted not to award a penalty after a VAR review. Zenit midfielder Claudinho appeared to trip Dynamo forward Konstantin Tyukavin outside the box as he moved to take a shot. Tyukavin went to the ground, and the decision not to award a spot kick ignited widespread discussion among fans, analysts, and football officials about whether the on field authority should be overridden by technology or trusted as the final arbiter of contact in the box.
After the incident, Dynamo Moscow chief executive Pavel Pivovarov publicly floated the possibility that Kukulyak should undergo a polygraph examination, suggesting these tests have become part of some Russian football procedures as a benchmark for handling contentious decisions. The idea intensified the broader debate surrounding the balance between technological assistance and human judgment in Russian football, with supporters and administrators weighing how VAR support should interact with the authority exercised by on field referees.
In another development, Spartak Moscow reportedly opened discussions with the Russian Football Union Refereeing Department. Dmitry Zelenov, Spartak’s chief of press, confirmed there had been talks connected to a recent closed meeting involving club representatives, the head of the judiciary, Pavel Kamantsev, and referee Vitaly Meshkov. The conversations indicated ongoing efforts to raise refereeing standards and foster consistency across matches, signaling a continued push to refine decision making and the application of video assistance in league play. These exchanges point to a broader movement within Russian football to bolster accountability while maintaining trust in the refereeing corps among clubs, players, and fans alike, and to address perceptions of bias or error in high-stakes games.