The 34 Best Russian Premier League Players of All Time

From early-90s pioneers to UEFA Cup winners and Brazilian flair signings, Russia's top flight has produced and imported countless stars. Cast your vote!

1. 1
   Igor Akinfeev

   CSKA Moscow one-club goalkeeper who has won six Russian Premier League titles across two decades.
   1000pts
2. 2
   Valery Karpin

   Spartak Moscow midfielder who won early Russian titles before his move to Spain and later returned to coach the club.
   570pts
3. 3
   Malcom

   Brazilian forward who won a series of Russian titles with Zenit Saint Petersburg in the early 2020s.
   570pts
4. 4
   Hulk

   Brazilian winger who joined Zenit Saint Petersburg in 2012 and won the 2014-15 Russian Premier League.
   570pts
5. 5
   Danny

   Portuguese playmaker who won three Russian titles with Zenit Saint Petersburg and scored on his debut in the 2008 UEFA Super Cup.
   523pts
6. 6
   Roman Pavlyuchenko

   Spartak Moscow striker who topped the league's scoring charts before moving to Tottenham.
   470pts
7. 7
   Keisuke Honda

   Japanese playmaker whose four years at CSKA Moscow included a Champions League quarter-final run and the 2013 Russian title.
   470pts
8. 8
   Sergei Semak

   CSKA Moscow and Rubin Kazan midfielder who later managed Zenit to multiple Russian Premier League titles.
   470pts
9. 9
   Igor Denisov

   Zenit Saint Petersburg defensive midfielder, a fixture of the club's UEFA Cup-winning side.
   470pts
10. 10
    Quincy Promes

    Dutch winger whose Spartak Moscow years included the 2017 Russian Premier League title.
    470pts
11. 11
    Seydou Doumbia

    Ivorian striker who twice topped the Russian scoring charts with CSKA Moscow and won two league titles.
    470pts
12. 12
    Aleksandr Kerzhakov

    Zenit Saint Petersburg striker and the Russian Premier League's all-time top scorer.
    470pts
13. 13
    Artem Dzyuba

    Towering Zenit Saint Petersburg striker and four-time Russian Premier League champion.
    407pts
14. 14
    Daniel Carvalho

    Brazilian playmaker whose CSKA Moscow years produced the 2005 UEFA Cup and 2006 Russian Player of the Year.
    407pts
15. 15
    Dmitri Alenichev

    Spartak Moscow midfielder who won Russian titles in the 1990s, returned to the club in the 2000s and later coached it.
    407pts
16. 16
    Dmitri Loskov

    Lokomotiv Moscow captain and the club's defining midfielder of the 2000s with two league titles.
    407pts
17. 17
    Viktor Onopko

    Spartak Moscow defender and captain who was named Russian Footballer of the Year in 1992 and 1993 before moving to Spain.
    333pts
18. 18
    Vasili Berezutski

    CSKA Moscow centre-back and captain who spent nearly two decades at the club, winning six Russian titles and the 2005 UEFA Cup.
    333pts
19. 19
    Aleksandr Anyukov

    Zenit Saint Petersburg right-back and longtime Russia international with four league titles.
    333pts
20. 20
    Alan Dzagoev

    CSKA Moscow playmaker who broke through as a teenager in 2008 and won three Russian titles in a long spell at the club.
    333pts
21. 21
    Claudinho

    Brazilian playmaker who won three Russian titles with Zenit Saint Petersburg in their dominant early-2020s sides.
    333pts
22. 22
    Yuri Zhirkov

    CSKA Moscow and Zenit left-back, a stalwart of the 2005 UEFA Cup-winning side.
    244pts
23. 23
    Vagner Love

    Brazilian striker whose CSKA Moscow years brought three league titles and a UEFA Cup.
    244pts
24. 24
    Ivica Olic

    Croatian striker who scored prolifically for CSKA Moscow during their UEFA Cup run.
    244pts
25. 25
    Sergei Ignashevich

    CSKA Moscow centre-back who won the 2005 UEFA Cup and five Russian titles and retired as Russia's most-capped player.
    244pts
26. 26
    Gökdeniz Karadeniz

    Turkish winger who spent a decade at Rubin Kazan and helped the club win back-to-back Russian titles in 2008 and 2009.
    244pts
27. 27
    Dmitri Sychev

    Teenage Spartak Moscow sensation of 2002 who later won the 2004 Russian title as a leading striker for Lokomotiv Moscow.
    244pts
28. 28
    Axel Witsel

    Belgian midfielder who spent four and a half seasons at Zenit Saint Petersburg and won the 2014–15 Russian title.
    244pts
29. 29
    Roman Shirokov

    Zenit Saint Petersburg midfielder and captain who drove the side to Russian titles in 2010, 2012 and 2015.
    244pts
30. 30
    Andrey Arshavin

    Zenit Saint Petersburg playmaker who led the club to its first Russian title and the 2008 UEFA Cup.
    244pts
31. 31
    Vyacheslav Malafeev

    Zenit Saint Petersburg one-club goalkeeper who won the 2008 UEFA Cup and several Russian titles.
    244pts
32. 32
    Egor Titov

    Spartak Moscow one-club legend who lifted six Russian Premier League titles as captain.
    0pts
33. 33
    Andrey Tikhonov

    Spartak Moscow winger and captain who won a run of Russian titles in the 1990s and later starred for Krylia Sovetov.
    0pts
34. 34
    Fyodor Smolov

    Krasnodar striker who won back-to-back Russian Premier League Golden Boots in 2016 and 2017 with his clinical finishing.
    0pts

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