Kryliya Sovetov V CSKA Moscow
Sunday 14th July 2019 – 14:30 Kick-Off
Russian Premier League
Pick: CSKA Moscow to WIN
Odds: 41/50
Bookmaker: Bet22
 |
1 | X | 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 77/20 | 11/5 | 41/50 |
* All betting odds displayed in this article were taken from Bet22 on July 12th, 2019 at 23:39.
Preview: The Samara Arena will host its first fixture of the new Russian Premier League on Sunday. Hosts Kryliya Sovetov will welcome 13-time league champions CSKA Moscow to a ground which produced a goalless draw in the corresponding meeting last term. Will it be another drab stalemate or can one of these sides begin with an important three points?
Russian Premier League betting at Bet22
Kryliya Sovetov Preview – Another low-scoring victory on the cards?
With every new season there is an opportunity to start afresh. Kryliya Sovetov are no different, the club from Samara whom barely retained their status in the Russian Premier League after a woeful run of form towards the end of last season. No win in their last seven matches (D1 L6) meant a 13th-placed finish, which was one of two relegation play-off positions. Despite losing 1-0 at home to a team from the league below, Samara eventually prevailed to win 3-2 on aggregate against Nizhny Novogorod.
One of those aforementioned seven losses were inflicted by their upcoming opponents, losing 6-0 in Moscow on the final day. That was their heaviest defeat of the season, and by some distance. Meanwhile the reverse meeting in Samara ended goalless, and it was at home where they did most of their positive work. Out of their total of 28 points accrued, 17 (60%) were earned at their relatively new Samara Arena where they recorded more wins and suffered fewer losses (home record: W5 D2 L8, GF11 GA15).
As you can clearly see from their goal statistics though, matches in Samara tend to be low-key affairs. Home games last season averaged 1.73 goals-per-game, with just 33% breaching the over 2.5 goals mark and only 20% producing both teams to score. Moreover, all five of their victories were accompanied by a clean sheet, four of which coming by a 1-0 scoreline. The Samara 1-0 correct score is 8/1 with Bet22.
Samara warmed up for the new Russian Premier League season with four friendlies. A couple of defeats in June to Ostrava (0-1) of the Czech Republic and Hadjuk Split (2-1) of Croatia were followed by a couple of morale-boosting wins in July over Slovenian side Celje (1-2) and fellow Russians Krasnodar (1-2).
CSKA Moscow Preview – Former champions worthy favourites?
There was a period in the not-so-distant past when CSKA Moscow were close to unstoppable in Russian football, but their stock has fallen sharply in recent times. Three consecutive Premier League titles between 2013-2016 must feel a long time ago now for a club which has regressed from being runners-up in 2017 and 2018 to not even finishing inside the top four last season. The repercussions will be felt long into the new campaign when the team has to make do without Champions League football.
A lot of the problems have stemmed from a lack of consistency; CSKA failed to win more than two league games in a row at any stage last season. Building up enough momentum to mount a genuine challenge at the top of the league simply isn’t sustainable if you cannot string more than a couple wins together. So it’s something they must seek to improve on, and they’ve been gifted a generous opening fixture to kick-start said improvement having thrashed the same opposition 6-0 in Moscow on the final day.
As straightforward as the most recent meeting with Samara was, CSKA did struggle in the away encounter when labouring to a goalless draw. That was one of six away draws (W6 D6 L3), with Viktor Goncharenko’s players often struggling to break down defences on their travels. Only two teams scored more league goals than CSKA’s total of 46, but just 15 of those were netted away from home where they averaged precisely one goal-per-game compared with 2.07 back at home. Under 1.5 CSKA Moscow goals is 61/100 with Bet22.
And if recent results in their warm up games are an indication of what is likely to come in the season ahead, the signs are worrying. A run of three successive defeats to fellow Russian sides Krasnodar (1-0), Spartak Moscow (3-1) and FC Rostov (1-2) was finally ended when overcoming Rubin Kazan (4-0).
Kryliya Sovetov V CSKA Moscow Key Facts:
- Kryliya Sovetov finished the 2018-19 Russian Premier League in 13th and without a win in their last seven matches (D1 L6).
- CSKA Moscow finished the previous season in 4th but with the second-best away record record (W6 D6 L3).
- The previous 19 league meetings saw CSKA Moscow beaten only once, winning eight of the last nine in Samara.
Betting Summary
The obvious bet would be backing few goals. These sides played out a goalless draw in last season’s corresponding meeting in Samara, with the pair averaging below 33% for over 2.5 goals in their respective home/away fixtures. The odds on Under 2.5 Goals lacks much appeal at 13/25, though. Under 1.5 Goals is 33/20 with Bet22 but that bet is too precarious for my liking.
The visitors are favourites, which is probably about right. Only two clubs registered more points (24) on the road last season than CSKA. A lack of goals away from home, coupled with some poor showings in recent friendlies, are a concern though. Then again, Samara did end the last campaign in such catastrophic form that a CSKA victory feels the most likely outcome.
CSKA put six past Kryliya Sovetov on the final day. While it may not be as comprehensive on this occasion, the 13-time Russian champions should really get off to a winning start here, against fairly limited opposition. This is especially true if the former champions expect to genuinely challenge for the title this time around.
