Goalkeeper Kokarev believes Khimki can reach RPL top-8

Goalkeeper Ilya Kokarev believes that the Khimki team is capable of breaking into the top 8 of the Russian Premier League

The goalkeeper spoke about the team's goals for the new season and about the reasons for the poor results in the previous championship

Khimki goalkeeper Ilya Kokarev believes that the team is capable of breaking into the top 8 of the Russian Premier League following their promotion last season.

Last season, Khimki finished 13th in the RPL, just four points clear of the relegation zone. Kokarev admitted that the results were disappointing but is confident that the team can do better in this campaign.

"Of course, the last championship was a failure for us. We set ourselves the task of finishing in the top 8, but we failed to do so. There were many reasons for this, but now there is no point in talking about them," Kokarev told reporters.

"Now we have a new coaching staff and new players. We have a good team, and I am sure that we can achieve our goals," he added.

Khimki began their new RPL campaign with a 1-0 win over Nizhny Novgorod. Kokarev kept a clean sheet in the match and was named man of the match.

Khimki will next face Spartak Moscow on Saturday.