Lokomotiv M – Spartak M

Lokomotiv will play it defensively against Spartak

On Saturday, November 12, Lokomotiv take on Spartak at home in the central match of the 17th round of the Russian championship. For the railroaders, this season is turning out to be the worst in recent history. Many had their doubts, but the team is really struggling for survival. The fans never waited for a breakthrough. The resignation of the German front office hasn't helped much. Lokomotiv notched one win in RPL over the hopeless Torpedo, and after the sixteenth round, they are on par with Khimki. In the last round, Lokomotiv won a draw against Ural in Ekaterinburg with great difficulty. The club's crisis seems surprising, given that the squad by name could well qualify for medals. Lokomotiv still have half the players with Champions League experience. The new interim coaching staff, led by Fedorov, decided to rely on Russians and youngsters. Only two foreigners were fielded in the main Ural squad. Fedorov also trusted very young players Kuzmichev and Pogostnov. Karpukas and Khudyakov, compared to them, look like veterans. Lokomotiv's hesitation like this does not lead to stability. At the moment, the situation with the Legionnaires looks alarming. Izidor does not play due to injury. Rookie Pedrinho has not trained with the main squad at all due to a conflict with the new coaches. Spartak are on the eve of a very important cut-off for the season. The club is six points behind Zenit. A loss of points against an outsider could effectively close the championship race back in November. "The Red-Whites made a rather unexpected misfire against Sochi. Guillermo Abascal presented a poor experiment. The team came out on a scheme with two big forwards. As a result, Sobolev and Nicholson were the worst players in the match with Sochi. Promes traditionally helps out. The Dutchman is playing at the level of his best years. The problem with Spartak is very poor rotation. There is no one to make substitutions specifically to enhance the game. Hence the problems in the second half with opponents who put up a fight. In the derby we should expect a classic defensive game from Lokomotiv. The team is not capable of more in their current state. Spartak also had their best stretch of the season. It will be hard to get past a packed defence. Open football is unlikely. In the first round, Lokomotiv hardly approached Spartak's goal. Now there's also reason to predict this exact scenario. Spartak will clearly not mind repeating their minimum win over Lokomotiv. In the last four meetings in this derby, the opponents have not broken the total. Goals are more likely after the break.