Prediction: Dynamo Moscow vs Zenit St Petersburg

Prediction: Zenit win

Best Odds: 8/11

Bookmaker: 888sport

With the Champions League and Europa League finally being completed, many fans have already decided to turn their attention towards the start of the new domestic campaign. For some countries, however, they’ve already kickstarted the new season – with Russia being one such example. All 16 clubs in the Premier League have four games under their belt, and today, we’ll be previewing one of the biggest matches of the season so far as leaders Zenit St Petersburg travel to face Dynamo Moscow.

Dynamo Moscow

There was a notable sense of optimism and hope within Dynamo Moscow’s ranks at the start of the season, and they proved why in a confident and efficient 2-0 win over Ural back at the start of August. They were unable to break Rotor down in their next outing as they drew 0-0, but they got back to winning ways just a matter of days later in a 2-0 win over Rostov. In their last game, however, the schedule caught up to them as they were beaten 2-0 by Arsenal Tula.

Team News

Dynamo have confirmed that Markov is set to leave the club in a matter of weeks as the rest of Europe continues on with their transfer dealings. The only other noted problem for them heading into this game is N’Jie who is a doubt after pulling up an injury against Tula.

Zenit St Petersburg

After winning both the Russian Cup and the Russian Super Cup, Zenit took their positive run of form into the new campaign with a professional 2-0 victory over Rotor. They proceeded to beat Rostov 2-0 with ten men, and then against CSKA Moscow, they kept their cool and managed to edge out a nice 2-1 win. Their latest game came against Tambov, and despite their busy schedule, they kept the train rolling in a 4-1 success.

Team News

Lunev has been officially ruled out due to a persistent injury and will not be available for the game. Elsewhere, Musaev is a doubt after missing three games due to undisclosed reasons, but some are hopeful that he will be able to return in time.

Factors to Consider

• In their last meeting back in December, Zenit beat Dynamo 3-0.
• Dynamo have won two, drawn two and lost two of their last six games.
• Zenit are unbeaten in their last 23 Premier League games.
• Dynamo have scored five goals and conceded five in their last six games.
• Zenit have scored 13 goals and conceded three in their last six games.

Conclusion

While upsets can always happen at the highest level, it seems unlikely that we’ll see anything other than a resounding Zenit victory tomorrow night. They have more flair, a better structure, and they’re 100% capable of breaking Dynamo down in pretty much every area of the pitch. The hosts have done very little to give fans hope that they can make a push for the title, whereas Zenit are already starting to look like champions-elect after just a handful of games.

Prediction: Zenit win

Best Odds: 8/11

Bookmaker: 888sport