Zenit St. Petersburg vs. Tambov 8/22/20 Premier League Soccer Pick, Odds, and Prediction

Zenit St. Petersburg is welcoming Tambov to Gazprom Arena in part of round 4 in the Russian Premier League.

Zenit hasn’t lost a game since January, and they have won the title last season, dominantly I might add, which just proved that Zenit is the best team in Russia. In this new season, Zenit is still undefeated, and they are at the top of the standings with 9 points, 6 scored goals, and only 1 conceded goal. Just a few days ago, Zenit has played the biggest derby in Russia against CSKA Moscow and was the better team in that match with 61% of ball possession, 7 shots on goal, 8 corner kicks, and solid 84% of the correct passes. The first half ended in 1-1 draw, but Zenit was the better team in the second half, and they have scored the winning goal in the 69th minute of the match. Azmoun is Zenit’s top goalscorer with 3 goals, while Dzyuba has 1 goal and 1 assist. There are no injuries or suspensions in Zenit as of right now. Before the season started, Zenit was also playing in the Russian Super Cup against Lokomotiv Moscow, which they also won 2-1. With the title in their hands, Zenit has qualified directly into the group stage of the Champions League. With a lot of money available to them, Zenit can afford to buy some players that others can’t, and that is what’s giving the edge to Zenit in the Premier League.

Tambov has barely escaped the relegation zone last season when they ended up in 14th place with 31 points, same as Sovetov behind them, but Tambov has had a better head to head record. This season hasn’t started well for Tambov, with 2 losses, but Tambov has snapped out of it on time, and they have won their last game against Khimki at home. Tambov was the weaker team in that match with only 38% of ball possession, 2 shots on goal, 2 corner kicks, and 71% of accurate passes. With an early goal in the 14th minute, Tambov has won this match 1-0, despite having one player less on the field because of the red card. Ciuperca and Karapetian have both scored 1 goal for Tambov this season, while Karasev and Kaplienko each added 1 assist. Gritsaenko is injured, but close to recovery, but he will need to pause a few more games because he is suspended because of the red card. This will be another tough season for Tambov because 4 teams are in danger of relegation this season, the bottom two are being relegated, while the other two are going into the relegation playoffs. I’m not sure that Tambov has the quality to avoid the relegation playoffs let alone stay completely out of the relegation zone.

Zenit and Tambov have played only 3 times against each other, and Zenit has won all three of those games, and each of those games vent over 2.5 goals. Zenit is the better team here by far, and I see them staying undefeated in the Premier League after this match.