Just in the second round the Russian Premier League offers us a great clash between the teams of Rubin (Kazan) and Zenit St Petersburg. Rubin will definitely have the mental advantage, because of the three successive wins against this rival in all competitions. Rubin is also traditionally strong at home, and no doubt the team will try to maintain this trend in the new season.
Despite the multimillion selection the team of Zenit failed to win the trophy of the Russian championship, trailing only 2 points behind CSKA Moscow. The main goal in front of the guests for this season is winning the title, and hence the pressure on the players and the coach should be severe. Even in the second round of the championship Zenit has the opportunity to make a serious claim for the top spot, beating Rubin as a guest.
Rubin midfielder Alexander Ryazantsev is suspended for this meeting and he will be the only player that Kurban Berdyev will not be able to rely on, as there is no injured players for the hosts. The uncertain future of Hulk most likely will be the reason for him not to take part in this game, also Roman Shirokov is injured and misses the match. We expect an interesting game in which the draw seems fairly likely.