The 2007 Champions of the Russian Premier League, Zenit St. Petersburg, won their first ever European trophy this May with a 2-0 victory over Scottish opponents Glasgow Rangers.
Zenit were worthy winners in a game which they dominated, with Andrei Arshavin providing much of the impetus of the Russians attacking advantage in Manchester's "City of Light" Stadium. It took him until the 72nd minute however to play through teammate Igor Denisov who struck past Neil Alexander in goal. Konstantin Zyryanov added a second in injury time, tapping the ball in after a pass from Fatih Tekke.
The match was marred by crowd trouble outside the ground, principally by Rangers' fans who had swarmed the city. During one incident a Russian fan was stabbed, although thankfully his injuries were not life threatening. The police arrested six men for serious assault. |