The press service for the First Division offered a wry remark on the Moscow club Torpedo’s exit from the Russian Premier League (RPL). In a three-goal defeat to CSKA during the 27th round of the national championship, the Black and Whites forfeited any path to a stay in the top tier for the next season. The tone of the post-match message was playful, wishing followers a warm “Welcome back to the best black and white league in the world!” while signaling the end of Torpedo’s RPL campaign for now.
Last season, Torpedo clinched the title in the Major League and earned promotion back to the RPL after a seven-year absence. Yet the club could not consolidate its position among Russia’s football elite. Throughout the campaign, the squad went through four different head coaches, with the leadership now in the hands of Spaniard Josep Clotet. This coaching carousel mirrored the instability often observed in clubs striving to re-establish themselves at the highest level, where consistency from the dugout matters as much as squad depth and tactical clarity.
CSKA Moscow secured second place in the final standings, amassing 54 points and signaling a solid campaign for the army club. Zenit St. Petersburg topped the table, sealing the Russian championship, a title confirmed in the 26th round as the top performers extended their hold on the lead. The championship arc highlighted a competitive season in which the front-runners maintained momentum, while other clubs battled for crucial results in the closing stages to determine European qualification spots and relegation battles alike.
Looking ahead, Torpedo’s remaining fixtures will pit them against Dynamo Moscow, Orenburg, and Lokomotiv Moscow, a trio of matches that could shape perceptions about the club’s prospects in the future. Each game represents an opportunity to assess the squad’s resilience, evaluate the new coaching approach under Clotet, and measure whether the club can recover from the setback of relegation with ambition to return soon to the RPL’s top tier. At the same time, CSKA’s schedule includes battles with Spartak Moscow, Krasnodar, and Rostov, fixtures that will test their ability to convert second-place form into sustained momentum and strong results as the season concludes.
In a separate exchange drawing attention from fans and pundits alike, Evgeny Lovchev, a former Spartak Moscow forward, publicly criticized referee Yevgeny Kukulyak following the Khimki versus red-and-white match in the RPL. The comments underscored the emotional intensity that accompanies high-stakes matchups in Russian football and the ongoing debates over officiating. Referee decisions often become talking points when results swing on narrow margins, and Lovchev’s remarks reflect the broader conversations about consistency and accountability in officiating across the league, a topic that tends to surface after pivotal fixtures or surprising outcomes.