The former head coach of Moscow’s Spartak, **Dmitry Alenichev**, shared his thoughts on the team’s performance this season.

“My impression is mixed. After 11 rounds, I would have hoped that Spartak would be in a better position than where they currently find themselves. Furthermore, I expected to see a different style of play, as the team has been highly inconsistent. This is the first point.

The second point certainly relates to the head coach and the situation he is in. I know him well from our days playing in Italy, where he represented Lazio and I played for Roma. Yes, Stankovic has always been quite fiery. However, his antics on the sidelines at his age are not becoming of him. This isn’t the first time he’s been suspended, and his latest ban lasted five matches. Just think about how challenging it must be for the players to go through such a long period without their coach. Ironically, Spartak performed better without Dejan than with him. Setting aside the defeat to CSKA, they managed three consecutive victories.

But when discussing Spartak, we should keep in mind another aspect. We all remember how last autumn they won six matches in a row right before the winter break. At that time, people were lamenting the arrival of the break because the Moscow team was in great form and was considered one of the top contenders for the title. So, I wouldn’t rule out the possibility that they could replicate that performance during this period, just like they did last year. At the very least, I hope for that. They must avoid dropping points if they wish to compete for the championship, as that is the goal.”— Alenichev’s comments were reported by RT in Russian.

Let us remind you that Stankovic was suspended for a month (until October 19) across all competitions organized by the Russian Football Union for using foul and insulting language towards the referee during the match in the 8th round of the Mir RPL against Moscow’s Dynamo (2:2). This game took place on September 13.