Russians Zenit conquer Europe

(CNN) -- Bankrolled by one of the world's wealthiest companies, Zenit St. Petersburg now have the silverware that means the Russian club's aspirations to be a major force in European football will be taken seriously.

Wednesday's comfortable 2-0 victory over a Rangers side almost devoid of attacking menace brought Zenit's impressive UEFA Cup campaign to a successful climax in Manchester as they matched the achievement of CSKA Moscow to become the tournament's second Russian winners in four seasons.

Igor Denisov got the vital go-ahead goal as the game was entering its final quarter, combining with Zenit's pivotal playmaker Andrei Arshavin to incise a momentary opening in the Scots' defense and then calmly slide the ball past goalkeeper Neil Alexander.

Konstantin Zyriano added a second with the last kick of the game to add gloss to the scoreline yet, in truth, spectators in Manchester were denied the full force of the Russians at the free-flowing best which had left a trail of more illustrious opponents in their wake en route to the final.

Possibly that had something to do with the suspension of Pavel Pogrebnyak, who had scored 10 goals during the campaign, including two in the 4-0 second leg win over German champions Bayern Munich which sealed Zenit's stunning 5-1 aggregate victory.

Before that, Zenit had blown away Bayer Leverkusen 5-1 on aggregate, winning 4-1 in Germany, rallied from a 3-1 first leg defeat in France to beat Marseille on away goals, and knocked out Spanish Liga high fliers Villarreal, again on away goals after drawing 2-2 on aggregate. That run of results means that Zenit's narrow qualification from their group -- in third place behind Everton and Nuremberg -- has been largely forgotten.

"Everybody expected it to be an easy game for us but it was harder than Bayern Munich who we were expected to lose against," said Zenit's Dutch coach Dick Advocaat, formerly in charge at Rangers. "Today it was more difficult because the expectation was on our side. But the players handled it well. We scored two brilliant goals and deserved to win."

Zenit fans' elation was mixed however with fears that their club could become a victim of its own achievements, with stars such as Arshavin and the influential Ukrainian midfielder Anatoliy Tymoschuk set to be inundated with offers from western European clubs. Arshavin this week was already being linked with a $20 million move to English Premier League side Manchester City. Having had a chance for a close-up look at Arshavin this week, City will have liked what they saw.

"It will be a problem now," Advocaat said. "There is no doubt that some players will go." The peripatetic Dutchman, whose tactical expertise has given robuts shape to Zenit's talents, might have added that he too, with both Russian and European titles under his belt, might be tempted by new challenges.

That uncertainty may already be taking a toll on the club's domestic form. The Russian champions have won just one of their opening six league matches of the campaign (the Russian season running from March to November).

Yet, with qualification for next season's Champions League already assured by last year's title, the club at least has time and resources on its side. With club funds provided by Gazprom -- an energy corporation with enough money to buy most small countries, never mind footballers -- Zenit ought to have the muscle to be a contender for further honors in Europe for seasons to come.

"I hope we can add new players to the squad and keep on improving," Advocaat said "These are good times for Russian football."