Former Lokomotiv defender Dmitry Sennikov believes Spartak’s head coach Guillermo Abascal has not lost his job yet. His remarks were shared with European Football.Ru and are being weighed by fans and analysts alike as the season unfolds.
“If Spartak suffers a defeat to Akhmat, it would mark a third straight loss. Will that put Abascal’s position at risk? The answer is not simply yes or no. Seats in the departure zone tend to shift for teams that are losing ground, but the top clubs rarely change managers unless the standings dip significantly below a certain threshold,” Sennikov commented, outlining a pragmatist view on managerial stability in top flight Russian football.
Abascal took charge of Spartak at the start of the 2022/23 campaign, bringing experience from his time in Greece with Volos and in Switzerland with Basel. As the season progressed, he extended his contract with the club, along with a salary increase. In his first full season in command, Spartak finished third in the Russian Premier League, signaling the club’s ongoing ambition to reclaim domestic superiority and compete in European tournaments.
After six rounds in the current Russian Premier League season, Krasnodar sits at the top with 14 points, followed by Ural on 13, and CSKA, Dinamo, and Zenit tied at 10 points. Spartak remains just one point behind this cluster, illustrating how tightly packed the league table is early in the campaign and how small margins can influence long-term planning for clubs and coaches alike.
Looking ahead, Spartak is scheduled to face Akhmat on August 26, a match that could serve as a turning point in the early stretch of the season. The result will be watched closely by supporters who are weighing the team’s tactical approach, depth, and depth of form across the squad as they seek to build consistency and climb the standings.
A veteran of Spartak recently noted an unusual fact about the club’s current squad: four defenders earned call-ups to the national team, a reflection of the defense’s quality and the broader depth within the squad. This development adds a layer of expectation for how the team will balance domestic league commitments with international duties, and it underscores the magnetism of Spartak as a club that produces or attracts players who perform at the highest level.
From a strategic perspective, Abascal has shown a willingness to adapt his approach. Whether deploying a compact backline, pressing higher up the pitch, or rotating attackers to maintain freshness, the coach has aimed to align Spartak’s gameplay with the evolving dynamics of Russian football and the demands of a congested fixture schedule. The coming weeks will reveal how his systems translate into results as the club eyes progression toward the top echelon of the table and a pace-setter role in the competition. (attribution: European Football.Ru)”