The former head coach of the Russian national football team, Boris Ignatiev, offered his assessment of the 2023/24 Russian Premier League season in a candid look at how it began, noting that the opening rounds would unfold with matches centered in St. Petersburg. He spoke about the early schedule, expressing a sense of disappointment with how the first fixtures stacked up for Zenit and Spartak, two clubs long regarded as championship contenders. Ignatiev emphasized that the opening phase of the campaign did not unfold as smoothly as some observers had anticipated, even though the league had only just started and momentum can swing quickly as teams settle into a new rhythm.
