FC Baltika Kaliningrad - Zenit St Petersburg predictions and free betting tips [30/08/2023]

The initial whistle will sound in Kaliningrad. As part of the Russian Cup's RPL Path, the rookie Mir-RPL team from Kaliningrad will face the best team of the last five years.

Baltika (Kaliningrad)

After 6 rounds of the 2023-2024 season, the team from Kaliningrad sits in the 15th place. Baltika's debut in Mir-RPL may not have been the most successful in terms of results, yet the essence of their gameplay leaves little to be questioned. The charges of Sergei Ignashevich do not park the bus in front of their own goal like some teams but strive to play from a position of strength and favour an attacking style. In Mir-RPL, Baltika suffered 5 losses, submitting in matches against Soch, Spartak, Dynamo, Ural, and Krylia Sovetov. The only successful match for Baltika occurred in the confrontation with Voronezh's Fakel. In the Russian Cup, Baltika has delighted their fans, securing victories in all of their 2 matches, defeating Akhmat and Krylia Sovetov. Against Zenit, it could be challenging, especially considering that Sergei Semak's team has come out of the crisis they struggled with at the beginning of the season.

Zenit (Saint Petersburg)

The current Russian champion has not had the best start to the 2023-2024 season. "Zenit" from Saint Petersburg, after 6 rounds, is currently sitting in the 2nd spot on the league table, trailing Krasnodar by one point. Such circumstance came about due to the crisis Zenit went through at the start of the season. This was even noticeable in the first round match against Pari NN, however, the St. Petersburgers got lucky at that time. Evidence of Zenit' struggles was also seen in matches against FC Rostov and Moscow's Dynamo. Zenit failed to hold onto a minimal victory in Rostov-on-Don and for the first time in a while, they lost on their home turf to the Moscow team. Now Zenit has found their rhythm and started picking up victories, defeating Fakel, Spartak and Ural in the Russian Championship.

Head-to-Head

Zenit and Baltika faced each other in 11 official matches. Baltika came out on top in 6 matches, while Zenit succeeded twice. In 3 matches there was a draw.

Prediction

Zenit will secure a victory. The team from Saint Petersburg has emerged from their crisis and has started to rack up victories. Baltika is impressive in the Russian Cup; however, their daring football style will inevitably play a cruel joke on the hosts.