Emmanuel Frimpong’s struggles in Russia continue as FC Ufa were defeated 2-0 by FK Rostov in the Premier League.
Ufa are on a dreadful run of form and haven’t won in their last six games—losing four and drawing two. Their woes continued away in Rostov as they were downed by two second-half strikes.
Frimpong’s outfit were looking like holding on for a valuable away point at the Olimp-2 Stadium with less than 15 minutes to play before substitute Sardar Azmoun broke the deadlock on 78 minutes.
The visitors changed their approach and began pushing forward for an equaliser, but were punished two minutes from time when another substitute, forward Aleksandr Bukhavoc, killed the contest.
Both goals were set-up by Gabon international Guelor Kanga who was the game’s outstanding individual and thrived in his role as one of two central playmakers in Rostov’s 3-4-2-1 formation.
For Frimpong, it was a much less convincing performance.
Despite primarily being a defensive midfielder, the Black Star started in a particularly unfamiliar position on the left wing in Ufa’s 4-2-3-1 set-up.
As was to be expected, his defensive contribution outweighed his offensive output, and while he managed three tackles, one interception and one clearance—according to Who Scored—he managed no key passes and only successfully completed one dribble.
The defeat leaves Ufa in the midst of a relegation battle and with eight games to play they find themselves 13th in the Russian top flight. Should the league table remain as it currently stands, both Ufa and 14th-place Torpedo Moscow would face a relegation play-off against the third and fourth-placed teams in the second tier.
Social media friendly Frimpong joined the Citizens in 2014 after a brief spell with Barnsley. He learned his trade with Arsenal and made six league appearances for the Gunners before appearing for the likes of Wolverhampton Wanderers and Fulham.
