CSKA – Spartak M

Spartak should not be considered outsiders against CSKA in the derby

CSKA will take on Spartak in the Russian Cup quarter-finals at home on Wednesday 20 April. Both teams are far from their best form at the moment. The Army team got off to a perfect start, but the winning streak was largely due to coincidence. The main factor is new international players of high quality. The revamped attacking group produced an outstanding execution percentage. Yazıcı used to score in every game until last weekend. Second, there was a significant element of luck. CSKA pulled out a few comebacks in the closing minutes. They snatched victories from Lokomotiv and Nizhny Novgorod. Not without a lot of luck they got three points in the derby with Spartak. In recent meetings the distribution has become fairer. The Army Men failed to cope with two close outsiders. The club almost lost to Ural. Only the referee saved them, by not awarding an obvious penalty. On Matchday 24 of the Russian Premier League, CSKA conceded victory over Ufa. The attacking tempo was again lacking the same sharpness. The internationals have been slowing down. Yazıcı is playing through pain amid injury. Spartak had no positives at all. Under Paolo Vanoli two wins in seven RPL games. No serious goals in the championship. "The Red-Whites failed to beat even a discouraged Rubin at home at the weekend. The game ended in a draw. The Kazan side created three or four scoring chances. No doubt, Spartak will put all their energies into the Russian Cup. Special preparation for this match is underway. It is important that all the key players are now ready to play. The team can count on Zhigo and Dzhikiya. The third defender in recent matches is Chernov. In the clash with Rubin Chernov got an injury, but his loss is easily made up for by Martins. The bookmakers put CSKA as the clear favourite in this encounter. Curiously, just over a month ago, Spartak dominated the line, although there was also no obvious reason whatsoever to favour the Red-Whites. The home stadium factor does not play much of a role. CSKA's internationals are losing ground at the moment, and the first head-to-head encounter also left many questions. The opponents are roughly equal in class. We can expect the game without any obvious advantage for one of the sides. An odds higher than 3.50 on the Red and White in an evenly-matched game looks very tempting, given the mini-crisis in CSKA. Plus the Army team will still have a chance to salvage the season by taking the bronze medals in the RPL. For Spartak, on the other hand, the Cup is the key game of the year.