Russia hosts Malta in round 6 of the World Cup qualification. The match will be played on Tuesday, September 7th at Otkrytiye Arena (Moscow)
Russia leads Group H with ten points after five games. Russian footballers began the current qualification with head coach Stanislav Cherchesov. In March the Russians beat Malta away (1-3) and Slovenia at home (2-1) and lost to Slovakia away (2-1). After an unsuccessful performance at Euro 2020, Cherchesov was replaced by Valeri Karpin. In the debut game with the new coach, the Russians shared points with Croatia at home (0-0). Last Saturday Karpin's team played an away match against Cyprus and achieved a 2-0 victory. The goals were scored by Alexander Erokhin and Rifat Zhemaletdinov, and Fedor Smolov made two assists.
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Malta is in 5th place in the qualifying group standings. The Reds earned four points in five matches. Despite the status of an outsider, the national team of Malta imposes a fight on the opponents in each round. The Islanders lost to Russia at home (1-3), shared points with Slovakia away (2-2), and fought for a long time in an away match against Croatia (3-0). In early September, the Maltese defeated Cyprus at home (3-0), winning for the first time at home in the World Cup qualifiers. On September 4, Mangia’s team lost to Slovenia in Ljubljana (1-0). The Slovenes had problems with creation and scored the only goal from the penalty spot, which Sandi Lovric converted shortly before the break.
The Russian national team is the favorite in the home game against Malta and is likely to score points, although this is unlikely to be done in a spectacular style. The Reds look good in defense, so they have never conceded more than three goals in the current qualification. It is unlikely that the Islanders will abandon the tactics that turned out to be effective in the match against Slovenia. Karpin's team, which is under construction, is not yet impressive in the attack. The match against Cyprus showed that the physical readiness of Russian footballers is far from ideal. The coaching staff of the national team will rotate the roster, and this can also play against a large number of goals.
Prediction for the match: Russia to win with +0.5 handicap and Under 3.5 goals scored
