1987 Soviet Top League

Soviet Top League
Season	1987
Dates	March 9 — November 16, 1987
Champions	Spartak Moscow; (11th title)
Relegated	CSKA Moscow; Guria Lanchkhuti
European Cup	Spartak Moscow
Cup Winners' Cup	Metalist Kharkiv
UEFA Cup	Dnepr Dnepropetrovsk; Žalgiris Vilnius; Torpedo Moscow; Dinamo Minsk
Matches	240
Goals	510 (2.13 per match)
Top goalscorer	(18) Oleh Protasov (Dnepr)
	← 1986 1988 →

In the 1987 season, the Soviet Top League – the top tier of football in the Soviet Union – was won by Spartak Moscow interrupting the two year championship run of the Kyiv's team. Dynamo Kyiv, the defending 12-times champions, placed sixth and failed to qualify for the European competitions, while their rivals Dynamo Moscow placed only 10th.

This season CSKA Moscow were relegated on additional criteria when they tied on points with Zenit Leningrad at the final standing.

Teams

Promoted teams

FC CSKA Moscow – champion (returning after two seasons)
FC Guria Lanchkhuti – 2nd place (debut)

Location

350km
217miles

Guria

CSKA, Dynamo Mo, Spartak, Torpedo

Dynamo T

Neftchi

Metalist

Žalgiris

Shakhter

Dnepr

Zenit

Kairat

Dynamo Mi

Ararat

Dynamo K

Locations of teams in the 1989 Top League

Final standings

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
1	Spartak Moscow^[a] (C)	30	16	11	3	49	26	+23	42	Qualification for European Cup first round
2	Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk	30	15	9	6	42	22	+20	39	Qualification for UEFA Cup first round
3	Žalgiris Vilnius	30	14	8	8	43	29	+14	36
4	Torpedo Moscow^[b]	30	12	12	6	35	25	+10	34
5	Dinamo Minsk	30	12	9	9	33	25	+8	33
6	Dynamo Kyiv	30	11	10	9	37	27	+10	32
7	Shakhtar Donetsk	30	10	10	10	29	31	−2	30
8	Ararat Yerevan	30	13	3	14	32	45	−13	29
9	Neftchi Baku	30	9	10	11	33	30	+3	28^[c]
10	Dinamo Moscow^[a]	30	9	11	10	27	30	−3	28^[c]
11	Metalist Kharkiv	30	10	7	13	23	32	−9	27	Qualification for Cup Winners' Cup first round
12	Kairat Alma-Ata	30	10	6	14	27	38	−11	26
13	Dinamo Tbilisi	30	9	7	14	31	40	−9	25
14	Zenit Leningrad	30	7	10	13	25	37	−12	24^[d]
15	CSKA Moscow^[a] (R)	30	7	11	12	26	35	−9	24^[d]	Relegation to First League
16	Guria Lanchkhuti (R)	30	5	8	17	18	38	−20	18	Relegation to First League

Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) Total points (If two or more teams have equal points for the first place, the winner is determined by additional single round-robin play-off on condition and place determined by the Federation); 2) Total wins; 3) Head-to-head results (3.1. points 3.2. goal difference); 4) Total games scored; 5) Total goal difference; 6) Draw lots^[1]
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:

1 2 3 1 point deducted (10 draw limited)
↑ 2 points deducted (10 draw limited)
1 2 Neftchi had more head-to-head points than Dynamo Moscow
1 2 Zenit had more head-to-head points than CSKA

Promotion

Results

Home \ Away	ARA	CSK	DNI	DYK	DMN	DYN	DTB	GUR	KAI	MKH	NEF	SHA	TOR	SPA	ŽAL	ZEN
Ararat Yerevan		3–0	2–1	0–0	1–2	2–0	2–1	3–2	3–2	1–0	1–0	2–1	1–0	3–2	1–2	2–1
CSKA Moscow	1–0		1–1	0–2	1–0	2–2	2–1	0–0	2–0	2–0	0–0	1–2	1–1	0–2	2–2	1–1
Dnipro	2–0	0–0		1–0	2–2	1–1	3–0	3–1	0–0	2–0	1–0	3–1	1–0	1–2	2–1	6–1
Dynamo Kyiv	7–0	1–2	1–2		2–0	0–1	3–1	2–1	1–1	2–1	2–1	0–0	2–2	0–1	3–1	1–0
Dinamo Minsk	3–1	1–0	1–0	2–0		1–0	0–0	3–0	2–0	0–0	1–3	0–0	3–1	0–0	1–1	3–0
Dynamo Moscow	5–1	1–0	0–1	0–0	1–1		0–1	1–0	1–0	2–2	0–0	0–1	2–1	1–1	1–0	2–1
Dinamo Tbilisi	1–0	1–0	0–2	1–2	3–1	1–1		2–0	3–0	3–1	2–0	2–1	2–2	1–3	1–2	0–0
Guria Lanchkhuti	2–0	1–1	1–2	0–0	2–1	2–1	0–0		2–0	0–1	1–0	0–2	0–3	0–2	0–2	1–1
Kairat Alma-Ata	0–1	0–2	2–1	1–1	2–1	1–0	3–0	1–0		1–0	3–1	3–1	0–0	0–0	2–2	1–0
Metalist Kharkiv	1–0	2–1	1–0	2–2	0–1	1–1	2–1	0–0	1–0		0–2	1–0	0–0	0–0	1–0	0–1
Neftçi Baku	0–0	1–1	0–1	3–1	0–0	2–1	3–0	2–2	6–0	1–2		1–0	0–0	0–2	1–0	2–1
Shakhtar Donetsk	2–1	1–1	1–1	1–0	0–0	0–0	1–0	2–0	1–0	3–1	1–0		1–2	0–0	1–1	1–1
Torpedo Moscow	3–1	2–1	1–0	1–1	0–1	2–0	1–0	1–0	2–1	1–0	1–1	1–1		0–2	1–1	1–1
Spartak Moscow	2–0	3–1	2–2	0–0	2–1	1–1	1–1	1–0	2–1	2–1	4–1	3–0	1–1		3–0	1–3
Žalgiris Vilnius	2–0	3–0	0–0	1–0	2–1	4–0	3–1	0–0	1–0	2–0	1–1	3–2	0–1	5–2		1–0
Zenit Leningrad	0–0	1–0	0–0	0–1	1–0	0–1	1–1	1–0	1–2	1–2	1–1	3–1	0–3	2–2	1–0

Source: ^{[citation needed]}
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Top scorers

18 goals

Oleh Protasov (Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk)

16 goals

Arminas Narbekovas (Žalgiris)

12 goals

Fyodor Cherenkov (Spartak Moscow)
Sergei Rodionov (Spartak Moscow)

10 goals

Georgi Kondratyev (Dinamo Minsk)
Yuri Savichev (Torpedo Moscow)

9 goals

8 goals

Ihor Belanov (Dynamo Kyiv)

Clean sheets

15 matches

Andrei Satsunkevich (Dinamo Minsk)

14 matches

Rinat Dasayev (Spartak Moscow)

10 matches

Viktor Chanov (Dynamo Kyiv)

6 matches

Vyacheslav Chanov (CSKA Moscow)

4 matches

Dmitri Kharine (Dynamo Moscow)

3 matches

Aleksandr Zhidkov (Neftchi Baku)
Jurkus Vatslovas (Zalgiris Vilnius)
Serhiy Zolotnytskyi (Shakhtar Donetsk)

Medal squads

(league appearances and goals listed in brackets)

1. FC Spartak Moscow
Goalkeepers: Rinat Dasayev (29), Stanislav Cherchesov (2). Defenders: Vagiz Khidiyatullin (29 / 3), Aleksandr Bubnov (28 / 1), Yuri Susloparov (23), Boris Kuznetsov (19), Almir Kayumov (18), Aleksandr Bokiy (15), Yuri Surov (8). Midfielders: Fyodor Cherenkov (27 / 12), Viktor Pasulko (26 / 7), Aleksandr Mostovoi (18 / 6), Yevgeni Kuznetsov (17), Aleksei Yeryomenko (11 / 1), Sergei Novikov (9), Babken Melikian (8 / 1), Andrei Mitin (8), Vladimir Kapustin (3). Forwards: Sergey Rodionov (26 / 12), Valeri Shmarov (26 / 5), Mikheil Meskhi (16 / 1), Oleg Kuzhlev (3), Andrei Rudakov (2), Mikhail Rusyayev (2), Viktor Kolyadko (1). Manager: Konstantin Beskov. Transferred out during the season: Aleksei Yeryomenko (to FC Rostselmash Rostov-on-Don), Babken Melikian (to FC Kotayk Abovian), Andrei Rudakov (to FC Torpedo Moscow), Mikhail Rusyayev (to FC Lokomotiv Moscow), Viktor Kolyadko (to FC Terek Grozny).
2. FC Dnepr Dnepropetrovsk
Goalkeepers: Valeriy Horodov (28), Serhiy Krakovskyi (2). Defenders: Sergei Bashkirov (30), Ivan Vyshnevskyi (29 / 1), Oleksiy Cherednyk (29), Serhiy Puchkov (20), Oleksandr Sorokalet (17), Volodymyr Gerashchenko (2), Oleksandr Lysenko (2), Oleh Fediukov (1). Midfielders: Hennadiy Lytovchenko (28 / 6), Vadym Tyshchenko (26 / 3), Anton Shokh (25 / 3), Mykola Kudrytsky (15), Volodymyr Bahmut (10). Forwards: Oleh Protasov (30 / 18), Oleh Taran (29 / 6), Yevhen Shakhov (28 / 3), Volodymyr Lyutyi (27 / 1), Vasyl Storchak (9 / 1). Manager: Yevhen Kucherevskyi. Transferred out during the season: none.
3. FK Žalgiris Vilnius
Goalkeepers: Vaclovas Jurkus (18), Almantas Kalinauskas (13). Defenders: Vyacheslav Sukristov (29 / 6), Sigitas Jakubauskas (29 / 2), Romas Mažeikis (29), Arvydas Janonis (29), Igoris Pankratjevas (27 / 3), Vladimiras Buzmakovas (23), Robertas Tautkus (9), Arūnas Žėkas (2). Midfielders: Vidmantas Rasiukas (30 / 1), Valdas Ivanauskas (25 / 7), Algimantas Mackevičius (20 / 2), Virginijus Baltušnikas (4), Viktoras Bridaitis (4), Stasys Tamulevičius (2). Forwards: Arminas Narbekovas (30 / 16), Stasys Baranauskas (28 / 5), Kęstutis Ruzgys (23 / 1), Gintaras Kviliūnas (5), Gediminas Sugzda (2), Robertas Fridrikas (1). Manager: Benjaminas Zelkevičius. Transferred out during the season: none.

Number of teams by union republic

Rank	Union republic	Number of teams	Club(s)
1	RSFSR	5	CSKA Moscow, Dinamo Moscow, Spartak Moscow, Torpedo Moscow, Zenit Leningrad
2	Ukrainian SSR	4	Dinamo Kiev, Dnepr Dnepropetrovsk, Metallist Kharkov, Shakhter Donetsk
3	Georgian SSR	2	Dinamo Tbilisi, Guria Lanchkhuti
4	Armenian SSR	1	Ararat Yerevan
	Azerbaijan SSR		Neftchi Baku
	Belarusian SSR		Dinamo Minsk
	Kazakh SSR		Kairat Alma-Ata
	Lithuanian SSR		Zhalgiris Vilnius

Attendances

Source:^[2]

No.	Club	Average	Change	Highest
1	Dynamo Kyiv	58,113	71,4%	98,000
2	Ararat	43,127	16,1%	62,300
3	Neftçhi	36,860	188,7%	37,600
4	Spartak Moscow	36,700	83,8%	95,000
5	Shakhtar Donetsk	30,153	21,5%	40,000
6	Dinamo Tbilisi	28,700	-22,8%	42,700
7	Kairat	27,407	176,8%	30,000
8	Dnipro	24,367	18,8%	32,000
9	Dinamo Minsk	22,907	72,6%	50,500
10	Metalist Kharkiv	22,727	42,8%	35,000
11	Zenit	21,333	-12,4%	50,000
12	Guria	20,633	95,1%	23,200
13	Dynamo Moscow	16,507	22,0%	50,000
14	PFC CSKA	14,320	166,6%	47,000
15	Žalgiris	11,540	70,4%	16,000
16	Torpedo Moscow	9,353	13,1%	38,000

References

↑ "ФУТБОЛ - 1987. О ПРОВЕДЕНИЕ СОРЕВНОВАНИЙ. (Football – 1987. On conducting the competitions". Центральный стадион им. В.И.Ленина (Tsentralny Stadion imeni V.I.Lenina). Archived from the original on 14 March 2023. Retrieved 13 March 2023.
↑ https://www.european-football-statistics.co.uk/attn/archive/sov/avesov87.htm

Soviet Union - List of final tables (RSSSF)

[table_note_SPA0.26558370807468-1] 1 2 3 1 point deducted (10 draw limited)

[table_note_TOR0.26558370807468-2] 2 points deducted (10 draw limited)

[table_hth_NEF0.26558370807468-3] 1 2 Neftchi had more head-to-head points than Dynamo Moscow

[table_hth_ZEN0.26558370807468-4] 1 2 Zenit had more head-to-head points than CSKA

[5] "ФУТБОЛ - 1987. О ПРОВЕДЕНИЕ СОРЕВНОВАНИЙ. (Football – 1987. On conducting the competitions". Центральный стадион им. В.И.Ленина (Tsentralny Stadion imeni V.I.Lenina). Archived from the original on 14 March 2023. Retrieved 13 March 2023.

[6] ttps://www.european-football-statistics.co.uk/attn/archive/sov/avesov87.htm

[a]

[b]

[c]

[d]

[1]

[2]

v t e 1987 in Soviet football
« 1986 1988 »
Domestic leagues	Supreme League First League Second League (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, Finals)
Domestic cups	Soviet Cup 1986–87 1987–88 Federation Cup
European competitions	European Cup 1986–87 1987–88 Cup Winners' Cup 1986–87 1987–88 UEFA Cup 1986–87 1987–88
Related to national team	Senior Youth U-19 Juniors
Club seasons
Supreme League	Ararat Yerevan CSKA Moscow Dinamo Moscow Dinamo Tbilisi Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk Dynamo Kyiv Dinamo Minsk Guria Lanchkhuti Kairat Almaty Metalist Kharkiv Neftchi Baku Shakhtyor Donetsk Spartak Moscow Torpedo Moscow Žalgiris Vilnius Zenit Leningrad
Winter 1986–87 transfers

v t e 1986–87 in European football (UEFA)
Domestic leagues	Albania Austria Belgium Bulgaria Cyprus Czechoslovakia Denmark '86 '87 England Faroe Islands '86 '87 Finland '86 '87 France East Germany West Germany Greece Hungary Iceland '86 '87 Israel Italy Luxembourg Malta Netherlands Northern Ireland Norway '86 '87 Poland Portugal Republic of Ireland Romania San Marino Scotland Soviet Union '86 '87 Spain Sweden '86 '87 Switzerland Turkey Yugoslavia
Domestic cups	Albania Austria Belgium Bulgaria Cyprus Czechoslovakia Denmark England Faroe Islands '86 '87 Finland '86 '87 France East Germany West Germany Greece Hungary Iceland '86 '87 Israel Italy Liechtenstein Luxembourg Malta Netherlands Northern Ireland Norway '86 '87 Poland Portugal Republic of Ireland Romania San Marino Scotland Soviet Union Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Wales Yugoslavia
League cups	England Israel Northern Ireland Republic of Ireland Scotland Soviet Union '86 '87
UEFA competitions	European Cup (Final) Cup Winners' Cup (Final) UEFA Cup (Final) Super Cup
Non-UEFA competitions	Intertoto Cup Balkans Cup '86 '87–'88

v t e 1987–88 in European football (UEFA)
Domestic leagues	Albania Austria Belgium Bulgaria Cyprus Czechoslovakia Denmark '87 '88 England Faroe Islands '87 '88 Finland '87 '88 France East Germany West Germany Greece Hungary Iceland '87 '88 Israel Italy Luxembourg Malta Netherlands Northern Ireland Norway '87 '88 Poland Portugal Republic of Ireland Romania San Marino Scotland Soviet Union '87 '88 Spain Sweden '87 '88 Switzerland Turkey Yugoslavia
Domestic cups	Albania Austria Belgium Bulgaria Cyprus Czechoslovakia Denmark England Faroe Islands '87 '88 Finland '87 '88 France East Germany West Germany Greece Hungary Iceland '87 '88 Israel Italy Liechtenstein Luxembourg Malta Netherlands Northern Ireland Norway '87 '88 Poland Portugal Republic of Ireland Romania San Marino Scotland Soviet Union Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Wales Yugoslavia
League cups	England Israel Northern Ireland Republic of Ireland Scotland Soviet Union '87 '88
Supercups	West Germany
UEFA competitions	European Cup (Final) Cup Winners' Cup (Final) UEFA Cup (Final) Super Cup
Non-UEFA competitions	Intertoto Cup Balkans Cup