Will Loko retain their lead and Zenit break their winless streak? Intrigues from the seventh round of the RPL
Nikita Paglazov August 30, 2024, 18:00 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
Spartak is expecting a visit from Rubin, and CSKA is embarking on a difficult journey.
The seventh round of the RPL will take place in just two days: August 31 and 1. It holds some interesting signs for us! In the main match of the tour, Lokomotiv will play in Moscow against Krasnodar. What else is intriguing? Let’s figure it out.
The tour will start in Khimki. In the last match, CSKA easily beat Akron at home (4:0), and Ivan Oblyakov scored three effective actions. But now Marko Nikolic’s team will visit Khimki. Another newcomer to the RPL. Although the club from the Moscow region looks much more serious than the team from Togliatti. Khimki has already defeated Zenit (1:1) and is in tenth place in the standings. And Anton Zabolotny will probably want to say hello to his former team.
Zenit is visiting Nizhny Novgorod this weekend. The St. Petersburg team has not won for two rounds already + lost to Akron in the Cup on penalties. Mini-crisis? Maybe. It is possible that the injury of Maxim Glushenkov, who was out of action for several weeks, had such an impact. But Zenit still needs to score points. And Sergei Semak must solve the problems. “Paris NN” is capable of fulfilling them, but the St. Petersburg team, even if it is not in the best condition, is obliged to win. Otherwise, talk of Zenit’s crisis will sound much louder.
In the last match, Spartak could have beaten Zenit in St. Petersburg for the first time in 12 years. It didn’t work out. And in the Cup, the Muscovites unexpectedly burned Dinamo Makhachkala (0:1). Dejan Stankovic’s team is angry. We need to steer it in the right direction and beat Rubin. Easy to say, hard to do! The Kazan team looks great this season and is capable of taking a place in the top five. And no one will give Spartak any points. Will Stankovic’s team go without a win again?
The last match on Saturday will take place in Grozny. “Akhmat” missed the victory over “Khimki” in the last round in the 90+8 minute. Magomed Adiev’s team has not yet achieved a single victory. But the match with Akron is an opportunity to break the streak. The Grozny team has lost Miroslav Bogosavac and Bernard Berisha for several months. Important players whose loss will be felt from a distance. Therefore, it is doubly important for Akhmat to defeat equal opponents at home and score points. Otherwise, the prospect of fighting for survival until the end of the season again arises.
Marcel Licka is going to Orenburg. It was there that the Czech’s Russian career began. And after Lichka moved to Dynamo, he always beat Orenburg. Will this streak of success end? There are few factors in favor of this. The Orenburg team this season did not show any results: only one victory (in the first round over Spartak) and 12th place. However, artificial turf and the right attitude can help Orenburg beat Dynamo for the first time under Lichka.
Last season, Krylia Sovetov fought for the top five until the end and now they are moving into the second half of the table. And the Cup defeat to Dynamo Moscow (1:5) did not add anything positive. Every defeat increases the chances of Igor Osinkin leaving the team. That is why the Samara players are forced to fight not only for themselves and the result, but also for the coach. In the seventh round they will face Dynamo Makhachkala. A tough, tough, but inferior opponent. Or will the Dagestan club cause problems?
The main match of the tour will take place on September 1 in Moscow. The unexpected leader of the RPL, Lokomotiv, will be put to the test in Krasnodar. In the last round, Murad Musaev’s team beat Dynamo in Moscow (0:1). The match was not easy, but goalkeeper Stanislav Agkatsev put in a great performance. In the match against Lokomotiv it will be more difficult to leave the field without conceding a goal. Although Krasnodar has only conceded three goals so far. What will they win: Loko’s cool attack or the good defense of the guests? An important match from the point of view of the situation at the top of the table. A victory of either team will be a manifesto of the fight for the title this season.
The seventh round will end in Rostov-on-Don. Valery Karpin’s Rostov will host Fakel at home. Rostov have not found stability so far, although the team’s performance allows them to count on fighting for the top 5. But Rostov is in eighth place. And Fakel only managed to win their first victory of the season in the last round (over Orenburg, 1:0). But Voronezh is still in the relegation zone. And it is too early to talk about great prospects. Especially when there is a trip to Rostov ahead. But it is the Rostovites’ instability that could be the key to Fakel’s victory. Will they take advantage of it?
