# 1988 Soviet Top League

The 1988 season was the 51st completed season of the USSR Football Championship: Top League. Spartak Moscow, the defending 11-times champions, placed fourth this season.

## Teams
### Promoted teams

* FC Chernomorets Odessa – champion (returning after a season)
* FC Lokomotiv Moscow – 2nd place (returning after seven seasons)

### Location
## Final standings

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk (C) | 30 | 18 | 10 | 2 | 49 | 23 | +26 | 46 | Qualification for European Cup first round |
| 2 | Dynamo Kyiv | 30 | 17 | 9 | 4 | 43 | 19 | +24 | 43 | Qualification for UEFA Cup first round |
| 3 | Torpedo Moscow | 30 | 17 | 8 | 5 | 39 | 23 | +16 | 42 | Qualification for Cup Winners' Cup first round |
| 4 | Spartak Moscow | 30 | 14 | 11 | 5 | 40 | 26 | +14 | 39 | Qualification for UEFA Cup first round |
| 5 | Žalgiris Vilnius | 30 | 14 | 7 | 9 | 39 | 35 | +4 | 35 | Qualification for UEFA Cup first round |
| 6 | Zenit Leningrad | 30 | 11 | 9 | 10 | 35 | 34 | +1 | 31 | Qualification for UEFA Cup first round |
| 7 | Lokomotiv Moscow | 30 | 10 | 12 | 8 | 35 | 29 | +6 | 30 | |
| 8 | Shakhtar Donetsk | 30 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 30 | 28 | +2 | 28 | |
| 9 | Ararat Erevan | 30 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 21 | 28 | −7 | 27 | |
| 10 | Dinamo Moscow | 30 | 9 | 8 | 13 | 32 | 38 | −6 | 26 | |
| 11 | Metalist Kharkiv | 30 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 29 | 36 | −7 | 26 | |
| 12 | Dinamo Minsk | 30 | 7 | 11 | 12 | 29 | 34 | −5 | 25 | |
| 13 | Chornomorets Odessa | 30 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 24 | 37 | −13 | 24 | |
| 14 | Dinamo Tbilisi | 30 | 9 | 5 | 16 | 28 | 37 | −9 | 23 | |
| 15 | Neftchi Baku (R) | 30 | 5 | 7 | 18 | 28 | 46 | −18 | 17 | Relegation to First League |
| 16 | Kairat Alma-Ata (R) | 30 | 6 | 4 | 20 | 25 | 53 | −28 | 16 | Relegation to First League |
* 1 2 No draw limit for Spartak M and Dinamo Mn
* ↑ 2 points deducted (10 draw limited)
Promotion
* Pamir Dushanbe ( Tajik SSR)
* Rotor Volgograd ( Russian SFSR)

## Results

| Home \ Away | ARA | CHO | DNI | DYK | DMN | DYN | DTB | KAI | LOK | MKH | NEF | SHA | SPA | TOR | ŽAL | ZEN |
| Ararat Yerevan | | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 |
| Chornomorets Odessa | 2–1 | | 1–3 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 1–2 |
| Dnipro | 3–0 | 2–1 | | 0–0 | 4–3 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 4–2 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 3–1 | 1–1 |
| Dynamo Kyiv | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 3–0 | 3–1 | 2–0 |
| Dinamo Minsk | 0–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | | 0–0 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 |
| Dynamo Moscow | 1–1 | 1–3 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 2–1 | | 0–0 | 4–3 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 3–2 |
| Dinamo Tbilisi | 1–2 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 3–1 | | 3–1 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 |
| Kairat Alma-Ata | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 |
| Lokomotiv Moscow | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 3–0 | | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2–0 |
| Metalist Kharkiv | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | | 1–0 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 |
| Neftçi Baku | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | | 2–2 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 |
| Shakhtar Donetsk | 2–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 0–2 | | 0–0 | 0–0 | 5–1 | 1–0 |
| Spartak Moscow | 1–1 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 4–2 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 2–2 | | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 |
| Torpedo Moscow | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | | 2–2 | 2–1 |
| Žalgiris Vilnius | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2–2 | | 2–0 |
| Zenit Leningrad | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 5–4 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–2 | |

## Top scorers
### 16 goals

* Aleksandr Borodyuk (Dynamo Moscow)
* Yevhen Shakhov (Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk)

### 15 goals

* Mikhail Rusyayev (Lokomotiv Moscow)

### 12 goals

* Sergei Rodionov (Spartak Moscow)

### 11 goals

* Oleh Protasov (Dynamo Kyiv)

### 10 goals

* Mashalla Akhmedov (Neftchi)
* Ihor Petrov (Shakhtar Donetsk)

### 9 goals

* Sergei Dmitriyev (Zenit)
* Vladimir Grechnev (Torpedo Moscow)
* Gija Guruli (Dinamo Tbilisi)
* Volodymyr Lyutyi (Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk)
* Arminas Narbekovas (Žalgiris)
* Andrei Rudakov (Torpedo Moscow)

## Clean sheets
### 14 matches

* Valeri Sarychev (Torpedo Moscow)

### 12 matches

* Valeriy Horodov (Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk)

### 11 matches

* Stanislav Cherchesov (Lokomotiv Moscow)
* Aleksandr Podshivalov (Ararat Yerevan)
* Viktor Chanov (Dynamo Kyiv)

### 10 matches

* Rinat Dasayev (Spartak Moscow)

### 9 matches

* Otar Gabelia (Dinamo Tbilisi)
* Andrei Satsunkevich (Dinamo Minsk)

### 7 matches

* Mikhail Biryukov (Zenit Leningrad)

## Medal squads

(league appearances and goals listed in brackets)
* 1. FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk
* Goalkeepers: Valeriy Horodov (25), Serhiy Krakovskyi (4), Igor Tyuterev (1).
* Defenders: Sergei Bashkirov (29 / 1), Ivan Vyshnevskyi (28), Oleksandr Sorokalet (27 / 1), Oleksiy Cherednyk (24 / 3), Serhiy Puchkov (22), Volodymyr Gerashchenko (7), Peter Neustädter (4), Serhiy Bezhenar (3), Oleksandr Chervonyi (1 / 1), Petro Buts (1), Oleh Fediukov (1).
* Midfielders: Volodymyr Bahmut (28 / 2), Mykola Kudrytsky (27 / 3), Anton Shokh (22 / 1), Vadym Yevtushenko (20), Vadym Tyshchenko (6), Viktor Rafalchuk (2), Yevhen Pokhlebayev (1).
* Forwards: Eduard Son (29 / 8), Yevhen Shakhov (28 / 16), Volodymyr Lyutyi (21 / 9), Igor Shkvyrin (10 / 2), Andriy Sydelnykov (8 / 1), Oleh Taran (4), Vasyl Storchak (2), Oleh Koshelyuk (1 / 1), Konstantin Yeryomenko (1), Yuriy Leonov (1), Valentyn Moskvyn (1).
* Manager: Yevhen Kucherevskyi.
* Transferred out during the season: Vadym Yevtushenko (to FC Dynamo Kyiv reserves), Peter Neustädter (to SC Tavriya Simferopol), Vasyl Storchak (to FC SKA Karpaty Lviv).
* 2. FC Dynamo Kyiv
* Goalkeepers: Viktor Chanov (25), Aleksandr Zhidkov (5).
* Defenders: Anatoliy Demyanenko (30 / 1), Oleh Kuznetsov (26 / 1), Andriy Bal (23), Serhiy Shmatovalenko (21), Volodymyr Bezsonov (19), Ihor Korniyets (13), Sergei Baltacha (12), Vladimir Gorilyi (11 / 1).
* Midfielders: Vasyl Rats (30 / 2), Hennadiy Lytovchenko (29 / 7), Oleksiy Mykhaylychenko (23 / 6), Oleksandr Zavarov (18 / 4), Ivan Yaremchuk (11), Andrei Kanchelskis (7 / 1), Pavlo Yakovenko (6 / 1), Serhiy Pohodin (3), Mykhaylo Stelmakh (1).
* Forwards: Oleh Protasov (29 / 11), Ihor Belanov (27 / 8).
* Manager: Valeriy Lobanovskyi.
* Transferred out during the season: Oleksandr Zavarov (to Juventus).
* 3. FC Torpedo Moscow
* Goalkeepers: Valeri Sarychev (26), Aleksei Prudnikov (5).
* Defenders: Aleksandr Polukarov (29), Valentin Kovach (26 / 1), Sergei Prigoda (15), Sergei Bodak (3), Maksim Cheltsov (3), Dmitri Chugunov (2).
* Midfielders: Sergey Agashkov (30), Vladimir Grechnyov (29 / 9), Oleg Shirinbekov (29 / 2), Gennadi Grishin (27 / 1), Nikolai Savichev (25 / 6), Sergei Zhukov (19), Aleksei Yeryomenko (9 / 1), Sergei Shustikov (1).
* Forwards: Vadim Rogovskoy (29), Nikolai Pisarev (19 / 1), Andrei Rudakov (18 / 9), Yuri Savichev (17 / 6), Aleksandr Gitselov (13 / 2), Vladimir Kobzev (8 / 1), Yuri Tishkov (1).
* Manager: Valentin Ivanov.
* Transferred out during the season: Aleksei Yeryomenko (to FC Dynamo Moscow), Vladimir Kobzev (to FC Rostselmash Rostov-on-Don).

## Number of teams by union republic

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