Know Your Minnows: Rubin Kazan

By: Ian Rose | July 12th, 2007

In the last installment of “Know Your Minnows”, we took a look at Rapid Vienna of Austria. This week, we’ll focus on the team that Rapid is likely to play in the next round of the Intertoto Cup, FC Rubin Kazan of Russia.

I’ve taken a look at a lot of Intertoto Cup sides, looking for interesting teams to profile in this column. What drew me to Rubin Kazan is the team’s international flavor. By far the most diverse side in Russian football, Rubin’s first team includes members from 14 different countries, including four Brazilians and a South Korean. It must be an interesting job for manager Kurban Berdyyev, considering that most of these players do not speak fluent Russian. But Berdyyev has managed to do quite well in his time at Rubin, bringing the team to the top flight for the first time in 2003 and since then finishing as high as third. Based in the relatively small city of Kazan, this is a remarkable feat, since the Russian league is dominated by strong teams from Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Rubin Kazan’s European experience is limited, having only recently been promoted to the top flight, but they have had some success. Their first trip to the UEFA Cup was in 2004, and they met none other than their likely Intertoto opponents, Rapid Vienna. Vienna won 3-2 on aggregate, a tough loss that the Russian side will remember well this season. They were more successful last season, when they beat BATE (Belarus) 5-0 to advance in the UEFA Cup for the first time. They then faced a tough draw against Parma, who beat them 2-0 on two close 1-0 matches. They’re a tough side that will not give up against a better opponent, and are unwilling to relent against a weaker one.

This year’s team is a tough one to make predictions on. Assuming that both Rapid Vienna and Rubin Kazan hold on to their second round leads and face each other in the third round, it will be a very tough one to call. It’ll be a great tie.

The story of Rubin Kazan has a sadder side to it as well. Defender Lenar Gilmullin, an extremely talented young fullback, was injured in a motorcycle accident in June. After slipping into a coma, he died on June 22nd. The team has pledged to play this season in Lenar’s honor, and that extra motivation, to play for their fallen friend, may just push them through.

Here’s a nice little goal for Rubin Kazan in a 1-0 win over Zenit St. Petersburg: