CSKA Moscow vs Chekhovskiye Medvedi

Playing at the DS Olimpiyskiy in Chekhov — the home arena of their opponents — CSKA Moscow found themselves trailing 14-11 at the break. Chekhovskiye Medvedi controlled the first half through efficient attacking play, building a lead that had the home crowd believing an upset was on the cards.

But the second half belonged entirely to the visitors. CSKA tightened their defence and found their rhythm in attack, outscoring Chekhovskiye Medvedi 15-8 after the interval. Yulian Girik led all scorers with seven goals, while Denis Ermakov added five. For Chekhovskiye Medvedi, the scoring was led by a player who contributed seven finishes.

The decisive moment came through CSKA's defensive adjustment at half-time. Goalkeeper Dmitry Kholmov was the defining figure, saving 15 shots at a 41% save rate. His performance disrupted Chekhovskiye Medvedi's attacking flow completely in the second period, turning a 14-11 deficit into a four-goal victory. The hosts managed only eight goals after the break — a collapse that owed everything to Kholmov's presence in goal.

• Dmitry Kholmov (CSKA Moscow) — Player of the Match. 15 saves at 41%, the foundation of CSKA's second-half turnaround.
• Yulian Girik (CSKA Moscow) — A match-high seven goals from the backcourt, keeping the scoreboard ticking during the fightback.
• Denis Ermakov (CSKA Moscow) — Five goals from the wing, providing reliable finishing on the outside.

The page-level stats panel shows CSKA Moscow leading the all-time head-to-head 13 wins to 10 from 23 meetings. This result extends CSKA's unbeaten run against Chekhovskiye Medvedi to four matches. The scoring pattern — 14-11 at half-time to the hosts, then 11-15 in the second half to CSKA — illustrates the game's structural shift: Chekhovskiye Medvedi's 3-goal half-time lead evaporated entirely as Kholmov's saves choked their attack. CSKA's 26 total goals came at an average of 13 per half, but the defensive swing was the real story.

CSKA Moscow have now won the Russian Super Cup four years running (2023–2026), following Chekhovskiye Medvedi's earlier run of nine consecutive titles (2014–2022). The trophy is the tenth in CSKA's history, supplementing their three league titles and three Russian Cup triumphs. Only four players in the squad — wingers Daniil Shishkaryov and Dmitry Ionov, playmaker Valentin Vorobyov, and backcourt man Girik — have been part of every one of those ten trophies.

Both clubs now turn their attention to the Russian Super League season, which begins in early September. CSKA Moscow face Kaustik on 5 September, while Chekhovskiye Medvedi will look to rebound from this defeat when their league campaign gets underway.

A Super Cup that followed its recent script — CSKA, the domestic double-winners from last season, found a way past their perennial rivals even when trailing at the break. Kholmov's goalkeeping performance was the single biggest factor, converting a potential Chekhov upset into a comfortable CSKA victory. The gap between these two giants of Russian handball remains narrow, but CSKA's clutch mentality in one-off finals continues to separate them.