<!--Article Start--> <h3 style="text-align: justify">Russian champions Zenit St Petersburg have enjoyed a perfect start to the season but coach Andre Villas-Boas claims his players have yet to hit their stride.</h3> <p style="text-align: justify">Zenit have come out of the blocks fighting, seeing off Lokomotiv Moscow on penalties in the Russian Super Cup, and Dynamo Moscow in their league opener last weekend.</p> <p style="text-align: justify">Next up is a trip to Ural Yekaterinburg on Sunday as Zenit look to make it two out of two in the league with Villas-Boas indicating his players are far from fully wound up.</p> <p style="text-align: justify"><em>"Only four weeks have passed since our pre-season practices began,"</em> the former Porto, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur manager said.</p> <p style="text-align: justify"><em>"But the players will get closer to their top form from match to match.</em></p> <p style="text-align: justify"><em>"Against Dynamo we moved much faster than we did in the Super Cup. I believe the team will get even better in a couple of weeks."</em></p> <p style="text-align: justify">Ural, who beat Kuban Krasnodar 2-0 in their opener, are gearing up for a tough clash against the title favourites.</p> <p style="text-align: justify"><em>"Of course we were happy to start the new season with a victory,"</em> said Ural head coach Viktor Goncharenko.</p> <p style="text-align: justify"><em>"But the upcoming match will be a completely different affair. It's a very serious test for our team."</em></p> <h3 style="text-align: justify">CSKA looking to get in the groove before their crunch Champions League third qualifying round match</h3> <p style="text-align: justify">Last season's runners-up CSKA Moscow are first up this weekend, they are at newly promoted Samara on Friday.</p> <p style="text-align: justify">For CSKA this is a warm-up to the Red Army's crucial Champions League third qualifying round encounter with Czech high-flyers Sparta Prague next week.</p> <p style="text-align: justify"><em>"Sparta is a well-known club, one of the longstanding leaders of Czech football,"</em> said CSKA boss Lenoid Slutsky.</p> <p style="text-align: justify"><em>"I expect a tough battle for a place in the play-offs.</em></p> <p style="text-align: justify"><em>"But first we need to perform at Samara. They started the season well, winning their first Premier League match on their return.</em></p> <p style="text-align: justify"><em>"No doubts that they will want to extend their winning run in front of their home crowd. I expect a hard match on Friday,"</em> added Slutsky.</p> <p style="text-align: justify">FC Krasnodar, third last season, tackle Russia's most decorated club Spartak Moscow on Sunday.</p> <p style="text-align: justify">But despite the challenge of facing the nine-time former champions, Krasnodar manager Oleg Kononov expects his youthful side to perform in front of their home fans.</p> <p style="text-align: justify"><em>"We're a young team, it's just our fifth season in the Premier League,"</em> he said.</p> <p style="text-align: justify"><em>"But we have no other choice but to come onto the pitch and fight until the very end in every single match regardless of the opponent.</em></p> <p style="text-align: justify"><em>"Spartak is a big name in Russian football and I believe my men don't need any extra motivation to produce their best football against them, especially in front of our home crowd,"</em> added Kononov.</p> . <p style="text-align: justify">Spartak, who finished sixth last season, drew 2-2 at home to FC Ufa in their opening game in a match shrouded in controversy with ex-Arsenal player Emmanuel Frimpong sent off after responding to alleged monkey chants directed at him by Spartak supporters. <!--Article End--></p> <p style="text-align: justify"><strong>By AFP</strong></p>