No happy return for Rui Vitória against Benfica
Former Benfica boss Rui Vitória will lead Spartak Moscow into battle with his old club in the first leg of their Champions League qualification third round match, with one more play-off contest on the horizon for the victors. Whilst Narodnaya komanda are able to call upon competitive games to increase their readiness for the clash, the visitors cannot, but at least have had the benefit of high profile friendlies against elite opposition. Read our preview here:
Moses to lead them out
Mixed fortunes have been endured in the Russian Premier League to date, with a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Rubin Kazan preceding a win by the same scoreline over Krylya Sovetov last weekend. A number of likely starters remain sidelined for the hosts on Wednesday evening - Pavel Maslov is nursing a hip injury, Aleksandr Selikhov has a fractured finger, whilst Dutch international Quincy Promes has a muscle problem. Someone who should make his presence felt is Victor Moses. The former long-time Chelsea player has signed permanently for the club after enjoying a successful loan spell in 2020/2021, and will likely be on the right of the attacking midfield three behind sole striker Aleksandr Sobolev, who is already off the mark this term.
Adel's on song
Jorge Jesus' men get their domestic season underway this coming weekend with a trip to Moreirense, and the exhibition games will have primed the Portuguese giants well for the two games on the horizon. As Águias have also been busy in the transfer market, including the capture of three prominent individuals; the signing of Ukrainian forward Roman Yaremchuk is especially noteworthy, coming as it does off the back of a successful Euro 2020. He might have to settle for a place on the bench on Wednesday however, but can expect to see some magic in midfield from the duo of Julian Weigl and Adel Taraabt. The Moroccan playmaker is very much a footballer who likes to get forward whilst shirking his defensive responsibilities, and Spartak can expect their guests to break at pace when given the opportunity.
No victory for Vitória
Vitória's time in Lisbon was laden with trophies, accruing six in total during a three-and-a-half year stint, including two league titles. The amount of key players unavailable does swing things in favour slightly of his old side though, and bet365 are offering odds of 2.25 for an away win in what is bound to be a cagey, closely fought game.
