success with Rubin Kazan, which again finished in 7th place in the 1999 season. In order to fulfil with ambition of playing in the top division of the Russianc championship, Victor Petrovich Antihovich was hired for the 2000 season. At this point, fifteen players left the team, four of which moved into top division clubs: Okroshidze, Bulatov, and Lysenko transferred to CSKA Sennikov, while Khuzin went to Amkar Perm. During the 2000 season, Saratov "Sokol" was the clear favorite for the 1st place, while Rubin Kazin struggled with Torpedo-ZIL for the second qualifying slot to the top division. In a dramatic meeting at the end of the season, Kazan was in 3td place, behind Torpedo by only two points. The 2001 season did not begin well for Rubin Kazan. As a consequence, there was another change of coaches, as Antihovic was replaced by Kurban Bekievich Berdiyev from Smolensk Kristall. Under his leadership, the club finished the season in 8th place. In the following year, a number of qualified players with experience from the top division were invited to the club: David Chaladze, Gennady Semin, Michail Sinev, and Andrei Konovalov. Overall, the season was a great success, with the club winning 22 of 34 games, and only suffering six defeats. Striker David Chaladze tied with Vyacheslav Kamoltsev for the title of best scorer; both scored 20 goals. Chaladze became the third player in the club's history to scoring four goals in one game, in the match against Krasnoyarsk Metallurg. 2003–2005 2003 saw great changes in Rubin Kazan, as a result of the arrival of a large number of foreign players, including MacBeth Sibaya, Pape Kebe, Andrés Scotti, Tomáš Čížek, and Jiří Novotný. The season began with a defeat against CSKA Moscow. This was followed by the team's first victory in a difficult game against Torpedo-Metallurg. Victories at home over Torpedo Moscow (3–1) and Spartak Moscow (1–0) pulled the club up to a mid-table position. This was followed by 10 matches without defeat, which took Kazan to second place. Fortune changed quickly when a serious injury to goalkeeper Sergei Kozko led to a losing streak. After a home defeat to Zenit St. Petersburg, Rubin dropped to 5th place. Winning the last 3 games of the season — against Krylia Sovetov, Torpedo-Metallurg and reigning champions CSKA Moscow — Rubin Kazan unexpectedly snatched third place. In 2004 Rubin began on an optimistic note. Almost