Two genuine heavyweights in the Russian Premier League meet on Monday in Moscow as Roberto Mancini’s Zenit travel to the capital in search of a crucial 3 points in pursuit of Lokomotiv Moscow at the top of the league. With 5 points between the sides – who both also have European commitments – it promises to be a highly entertaining encounter.
Russian Premier League – Otkrytie Arena, Moscow – Monday 27th November – 16:30 UK Time
FK Spartak MoskauBest Odd of: 13/8 at PaddyPower |
Draw Best Odd of: 9/4 at Skybet |
Zenit St PetersburgBest Odd of: 7/5 at Skybet |
Spartak Moscow
Massimo Carrera’s men are currently 4th in the Russian Premier League – 8 points behind bitter rivals Lokomotiv Moscow at the top of the tree. With 28 points from their 17 games, Spartak have recovered well from a shaky start to the season and they haven’t lost in the league since August. Quincy Promes has been prolific for Spartak this season – bagging 8 goals and how he’d love to add to his tally in such an important game.
Zenit St Petersburg
Roberto Mancini has made his Zenit side very hard to beat – they have only lost twice this season – the best record in the Russian Premier League. With 33 points from their 17 games, Zenit have been in great form recently – both domestically and in Europe and they sit only 3 points behind Lokomotiv Moscow. Aleksandr Kokorin has been integral to Zenit’s success this term with 9 goals in his 17 appearances so far.
Head to Head
Zenit hold the superior head to head record in the Russian Premier League – leading by 12 wins to 9 in the historical head to head with another 10 games finishing as draws. The two sides met earlier in the season in a fiery encounter with both sides being reduced to 10 men as Zenit thumped Spartak 5-1 at home back in early August.
Odds and Predictions
This should be an entertaining encounter between two attack minded sides.
Both teams to score – YES – looks a sure fire bet at 8/13 with William Hill.
Quincy Promes has been in fine form for Spartak so far this season.
Quincy Promes to score anytime looks way overpriced at 6/4 with Bet 365.
The first meeting between the sides yielded 2 red cards and there’s no love lost between the two teams.
A red card to be shown in the match is a real possibility at 5/2 with Paddy Power.
These sides are very evenly matched and Roberto Mancini prides his sides on not being beaten easily.
The match to finish as a draw represents good value at 9/4 with Skybet.
Score Prediction
Spartak Moscow 1 – 1 Zenit St Petersburg – 6/1 with Bet Victor.
Top Betting Tip
Both teams need the points in pursuit of Lokomotiv Moscow but could well cancel each other out in this crunch encounter. Match to end as a draw and under 2.5 goals in the game pays a healthy 4/1 with 188 Bet.