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Zenit St. Petersburg and Spartak Moscow will lock horns at the Gazprom Arena on Saturday evening for the Super Cup trophy.
The Zenitchiki are the reigning champions of the Premier Liga, winning their fourth straight league title and ninth overall. They picked up a modest 65 points from 30 games but still finished nine points above second-placed Sochi.
Zenit have won the last two Super Cup titles, beating Lokomotiv Moscow 2-1 in 2020 and 3-0 last year. Victory on Saturday will see them draw level with CSKA Moscow for most wins in the domestic cup.
Spartak, meanwhile, endured a highly disappointing league campaign, finishing tenth, their lowest league finish in nearly two decades. They, however, found better luck in the Russian Cup, lifting the domestic title, beating city rivals Dynamo Moscow 2-1 in the final.
The Gladiators have won the Super Cup just once, beating Lokomotiv Moscow 2-1 in 2017.
Zenit St. Petersburg vs Spartak Moscow Head-to-Head
In the last 50 meetings between Zenit and Spartak, the hosts have won 20 and lost 14. Their 16 other matchups have ended in draws, including their most recent meeting that ended 1-1.
Zenit St. Petersburg Form Guide (all competitions): W-W-W-W-L.
Spartak Moscow Form Guide (all competitions): W-W-D-W-L.
Zenit St. Petersburg vs Spartak Moscow Team News
Zenit St. Petersburg
Russian international Vyacheslav Karavaev has been out of action since March due to an injury and will not play this weekend.
Injured: Vyacheslav Karavaev.
Doubtful: None.
Suspended: None.
Unavailable: None.
Spartak Moscow
Manager Paolo Vanoli has no injury or suspension concerns to worry about. Midfielder Alex Kral has returned from his loan spell at West Ham and should be in the squad.
Injured: None.
Doubtful: None.
Suspended: None.
Unavailable: None.
Zenit St. Petersburg vs Spartak Moscow Predicted XIs
Zenit St. Petersburg (4-4-2): Mikhail Kerzhakov; Aleksey Sutormin, Dejan Lovren, Dmitri Christyakov, Douglas Santos; Andrey Mostovoy, Wilmar Barrios, Marcus Wendel, Claudinho, Malcolm, Mateo Cassierra.
Spartak Moscow (3-4-3): Aleksandr Maksimenko; Ruslan Litvinov, Maximiliano Caufriez, Georgiy Dzhikiya; Victor Moses, Christopher Martins Pereira, Danil Prutsev, Daniil Khlusevich; Mikhail Ignatov, Aleksandr Sobolev, Quincy Promes.
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Zenit St. Petersburg vs Spartak Moscow Prediction
Zenit are quite clearly the powerhouse in Russian football at the moment. They closed out their league campaign with just one defeat in their last 19 games and continued that form in the pre-season, winning all four games.
Spartak, meanwhile, endured one of their most underwhelming campaigns last season, with their cup triumph merely papering over the cracks. They are winless in their last eight games against Zenit and could lose again.
Prediction: Zenit St. Petersburg 2-1 Spartak Moscow.
