Akhmat – Zenit

Akhmat can avoid defeat in a game with the champion

On Saturday, 6 August, Akhmat will take on Zenit at home in Grozny. The reigning champion is already beautifully positioned at the top of the table after the third round. The team defeated Lokomotiv, 5-0. Zenit once again showed that they are on a different level in Russia. Semak still opts for an almost entirely Brazilian attacking line-up. The main players from the Russian national team come on as reserves. No RPL club has an answer against such a resource. Zenit, meanwhile, have certain difficulties in defence. The cost of not having a trained pair of central defenders. Semak continues to experiment here. Due to injuries Kuzyaev, Karavaev and newcomer Mantuan will not be sent to Grozny, but this does not really affect the potential of the Russian league leader. Akhmat had a decent start to the season. After three rounds, Talayev's charges have four points. Last weekend they failed to score against Sochi. This game lacked stability. Akhmat dominated the first twenty minutes and even scored two goals, but both from offside. Then a lot was decided by Noboa's performing skills. The Ecuadorian scored a beautiful goal which proved victorious. Akhmat showed their character. The team didn't give up at 1-2, they could have restored the equalities. Akhmat still have a rather cautious style of play. Ball possession is not the main trump card for the Grozny club. The team is only thirteenth in RPL by this indicator. Against Zenit there will definitely be a low block, and possibly a five-back scheme. Zenit often have problems with motivation in such matches. Suffice it to recall the confrontation in the first round against Khimki. The Pitmen scored once, but then gave up the initiative themselves. The bookmakers are expecting a very productive nature of the game, but there could be another scenario. Akhmat know how to play good defense. Here Grozny is even more dangerous than Khimki for Zenit. Plus a greater advantage of their own stands and a slow pitch. The Petersburg club can decide the game thanks to their performance, but a rout is unlikely. The last encounter in Grozny ended 2-0 in favour of the favourites. If we take the distance of six games at the Akhmat Stadium, the opponents have only once hit the total score of over 3. Now it is also rather difficult to believe in four goals scored. Akhmat will not play in the style of Lokomotiv and open up. Zenit have no particular desire to take on their opponents. They can be content with a minimum victory. Even a draw at such a difficult away game will not be a big tragedy for the champion.