CSKA keep pressure on leaders

CSKA Moscow kept themselves just two points behind Russian Premier League leaders Zenit St. Petersburg thanks to a 4-0 win over Spartak Nalchik today. Zenit had turned up the pressure with a 3-0 victory over Volga Nizhny Novgorod yesterday, but CSKA responded well, Vagner Love giving them a first-half lead before being sent off 16 minutes from time. Despite that, though, Seydou Doumbia's hat-trick - all in the last seven minutes, with his final two goals coming in stoppage time - gave the scoreline a one-sided look. Rubin Kazan and Rostov drew 1-1 in the day's other game. With both sides already knowing which side of the league's split they will end up on after their next game, there was little resting on this one. Rubin, who will play off for the European places in the new year, took a 56th-minute lead through Salvatore Bocchetti but Maksim Grigorev responded five minutes later for Rostov, who are condemned to the bottom half.