Athletistic/ Football. In the central game of RPL Matchday 25, Spartak will host Rostov. The match will take place in Moscow.
“Spartak” M – “Rostov”
The match promises to be decisive in terms of the fight for the medals. The Southerners are currently ahead of the “red-whites” by one point. CSKA are three points behind. “Rostov” in case of victory will deliver a very solid margin. The condition of the “red-whites” raises concerns, despite two victories in a row in the RPL. In many ways, because a departure from the Russian Cup was hiding between them. “Spartak” after the defeat of “Akron” missed three goals in Moscow from Krasnodar. The game proved to be very entertaining, but it only doubled the questions about the state of Guillermo Abascal’s defense. Jikia came back, but the coach decided to use the scheme with three defenders in the middle. In the end, she failed. Alexis Duarte’s race has already become a joke. The player was unable to run to his door on the sidewalk. Abascal still doesn’t have a reliable defense. Now, there is still no understanding about the scheme of the next game. At the same time, there are also advantages. Key performers returned to Spartak. Promes has already scored the winning goal against Krasnodar. The Dutchman got the necessary form. At the decisive moment of the season, the leader on the field will not be alone. Giorgi Jikia will also strengthen the defense. In attack, Abascal has a wide choice of performers. I need to add confidence after effective actions and Anton Zinkovsky. Rostov does not have such luxury in its composition. The club survives at the expense of young performers, without having worthy reserves. Surprisingly, Valery Karpin’s side manage to surpass many top clubs in the current league. Rostov struggled to approach 2023. The team flew out of the Russian Cup, fell under the heated Lokomotiv, but in the rest of the games they took their points. “Rostov” competently handled the underdogs, delivering a winning streak with a minimum score of 1-0. The club managed to save a draw in Orenburg, where the same “Spartak” was defeated. On the final lap, the southerners overcame the Urals in a tough outing for a clear advantage. The trend towards penalties continues. “Rostov” receives shots on goal in almost every match. In this regard, most encounters that the team completes in total more. In Moscow, an effective scenario is also visible. Karpin always has a special attitude towards Spartak. In the first round, the opponents gave the match with the score 4:2 in favor of the southerners. Last season in Moscow they exchanged goals, and in Rostov-on-Don they scored five for two. Of the last ten matches, only one has not bet on the under total. In another match, the opponents did not exchange goals.
Also on April 29 in Grozny “Akhmat” at home will meet CSKA.
Akhmat – CSKA
On Saturday, April 29, Akhmat will face CSKA at home. The army team is motivated to fight for the medals. The team almost caught Spartak, but still lost three points. “Akhmat” is fighting for positions in the top five, but there are no special tournament tasks. You can’t really achieve medals. CSKA in a rather attacking style interrupted the RPL winning streak. The team dominated the opponent throughout the game, scored a goal and even got a power play. All this did not spare us the conceding offensive goal from the standard position. Before that, CSKA didn’t show a perfect game either. The local team did not beat the Urals in the Russian Cup match. Thus, two draws changed five consecutive victories in all tournaments. There are questions to the attacking group about the implementation of moments. Carrascal remains a reservist, Medina passes abruptly. Fedotov still relies on a group of Zabolotny and Chalov, but the downsides of both players are clear. In defense of CSKA, the good news is the return of Diveev. The club have not conceded more than one goal per game in the RPL since the first meeting against Sochi. “Akhmat” is always the revelation of the season. The Grozny club shows clear progress. We are far from fighting for medals, but a place in the top 5 is a great achievement. The team passes over the “Dynamo”, “Krasnodar” and “Locomotive”. New coach Sergei Tashuev has clearly focused on defence. The tactical approach works. The team have conceded one goal in the last five RPL matches. The attack is not without luck. In the match with Sochi, Ilyin’s long-range strike brought victory. “Akhmat”, if he opens an account, he closes and acts as the second number. In the last six matches with the participation of the club from Grozny, the total did not break through. If we take advanced stats, Tashuev’s side are lucky in terms of goals conceded. The club conceded two goals less than expected. At the same time, the indicators are still at a very high level. The club ranks second in quality of defense in the RPL in 2023. Attack is not in the top five. An important factor in the rise was the form of goalkeeper Shelia. It shows the best game of his career. Careful play can be seen in Grozny. The draw will not be a drama for the two clubs. CSKA have a head-to-head game with Spartak ahead, where you can step into the fight for the medal. For Akhmat, a home draw with a Moscow club is always a holiday. Both trainers lean towards a closed style. Doesn’t talk about goals and past head-to-head history. “Akhmat” and CSKA only once in the last five matches broke through the total. At a distance of ten games, only in two meetings there was a bet on the exchange of goals.
Andrey Andreev, Sport.Ru
Source: Sport
I’m Scott Moore, a professional writer and journalist based in the US. I’ve been writing for various publications for over 8 years now, and have been working as an author at athletistic for the past five years. My work has been featured by some of the leading sports websites and magazines across Europe.
