Just as the playoffs against Slovenia could earn Russia a last-minute berth to the next World Cup in South Africa, they could also send Zenit’s Igor Denisov (pictured right) and Vladimir Bystrov into the top echelon of the FTBL ranking of midfielders in the Russian Premier League.
Denisov, who has an overall FTBL score of 62.19 points at the moment, will go in with a plank of less than 2 rating points to beat and is guaranteed a spot at the top if Russia avoid losing both games. Bystrov, on the other hand, has a tally of 61.7 points at the moment and will face a plank of 5.20 rating points to beat. He will rise to the upper echelon of our ranking of midfielders even in case of a draw. If Russia win and either Denisov or Bystrov scores a goal, then one of them could even capture the top spot in the ranking.
© FTBL