Dinamo Kirov — Amkar: 4:4, Cup

Dynamo Kirov and Amkar shared four goals each before the Regions Path third-round cup tie was decided by penalties on 25 August. The hosts won the shootout 5-4 after both sides had scored from five spot-kicks each, with Amkar's E. Snegirev the only taker to miss when it mattered.

And here's the thing about this one — you could watch the whole match and still not get it, but then you remember what happens around the twenty-minute mark. B. Bilalov opened the scoring from the spot at ten minutes, and Amkar responded through D. Agureev just before half-time. Bilalov added two more in the second half, while Agureev and N. Goldobin kept the visitors level. By then the game had turned into something else entirely, a penalty festival that neither side could control.

To be fair, the statistics don't tell you much beyond what the scoreline already showed. Both teams registered four shots on target with none off target, and both won two corners. Dynamo Kirov held 54 per cent of possession, which might sound like advantage but meant little when every chance came from a penalty area.

The result means Dynamo Kirov advance while Amkar's cup run ends. Neither side had particularly strong recent form — both had drawn away at Sokol Saratov and Neftekhimik respectively, and both had found the net against lower opposition. Cup football has its own rules, and this one ended with five penalties taken, five scored, and one missed.