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Zenit St Petersburg and Lokomotiv Moscow will trade tackles at Gazprom Arena on Sunday, with three points at stake in the Russian Premier League.
A lot rides on the outcome of this fixture, as just six points separate the two sides in first and second place.
The hosts currently occupy top spot in the table, having accrued 58 points from 27 games to date. Lokomotiv Moscow are six points below and will be looking to register a win to boost their title hopes with only two games left.
Zenit come into this game on the back of a 6-0 thrashing of Rotor Volgograd. Five different scorers, in addition to an own goal by Solomon Kverkveliya, helped the defending champions pick up a convincing victory.
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Lokomotiv Moscow also had an emphatic victory of their own. Grzegorz Krychowiak scored a brace to secure a 5-2 away victory against FC Tambov.
Zenit St Petersburg vs Lokomotiv Moscow Head-to-Head
The two sides have met on 46 occasions in the last two decades, with Zenit boasting a marginally better record.
The Blue-White-Sky Blues have 16 wins to their name, while Lokomotiv Moscow have 12 wins in this fixture. The two sides shared the spoils in 18 previous stalemates.
Their most recent meeting came in August 2020 when they could not be separated in a goalless draw.
Both sides are among the form teams in the league. Zenit are unbeaten in six league games, while Lokomotiv Moscow have won their last 12 games consecutively in all competitions.
Zenit form guide: W-D-W-W-W
Lokomotiv Moscow form guide: W-W-W-W-W
Zenit St Petersburg vs Lokomotiv Moscow Team News
Zenit
The hosts have defender Dejan Lovren ruled out with a muscle injury. There are no suspension concerns for Zenit.
Injury: Dejan Lovren
Suspension: None
Lokomotiv Moscow
Lokomotiv Moscow also have one fitness concern, with defender Mikhail Lysov currently sidelined with heart-related issues.
Heart issue: Mikhail Lysov
Suspension: None
Zenit St Petersburg vs Lokomotiv Moscow Predicted XI
Zenit Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Andrey Lunev (GK); Douglas Santos, Yaroslav Rakitskiy, Dmitriy Chistyakov, Aleksei Sutormin; Wendel, Wilmar Barrios; Andrey Mostovoy, Sebastian Driussi, Malcom; Artem Dyzuba
Lokomotiv Moscow Predicted XI (4-3-3): Anton Kochenkov (GK); Maciej Rybus, Pablo, Murilo Cerqueira, Dmitri Rybchinskiy; Stanislav Magkeev, Grzegorz Krychowiak, Daniil Kulikov; Rifat Zhemaletdinov, Francois Kamano, Fedor Smolov
Zenit St Petersburg vs Lokomotiv Moscow Prediction
Lokomotiv Moscow are making a genuine charge for the title and their form over the last two months has been top-notch.
Zenit need just two wins from their final three matches to retain their title and are likely to prioritize defense in this game, as a draw would still be in their favor. The two sides are likely to cancel each other out in a low-scoring draw.
Prediction: Zenit St Petersburg 1-1 Lokomotiv Moscow
