Spartak Moscow – UFA

The champion of Russia Spartak Moscow travels to face Ufa in a game from the second round of the Premier League.Spartak didn’t start the new season in the best way possible. The champion had two goals advantage during the Moscow derby with Dinamo, but the match at the Arena Khimki ended with a disappointing for Spartak 2-2 draw.Quincy Promes and Luiz Adriano scored for Spartak, but goals from Panchenko and Tashaev didn’t allow Spartak to achieve a first win for the new season.Meanwhile Ufa started the new season with a win. They traveled to Sankt-Peterburg to face Tosno and enjoyed a 1-0 win away from home. The only goal of the match was scored by Dmitrij Sysuev after the break.Lokomotiv Moscow, Krasnodar and Zenit already started the new season with two consecutive wins, so Spartak must start winning too. If the champions lose too many points at the beginning of the season, the main goal to defend the championship crown could become really difficult to achieve.Last season Spartak surprisingly lost their home game against Ufa with 0-1. They redeemed themselves with a 3-1 win in the second match, but this result in Moscow should be a red lamp for the champions. If it happened once, it could happen again.Of course, Spartak is the clear favorite in this match. They didn’t play badly against Dinamo in the first game, it was just the result which was not good. Spartak are the reigning champions of Russia, so everyone has to face them with the respect they deserve.As for Ufa, last season they finished their campaign in the Premier League at 7th place. They are a typical mid-table team. But can they surprise everyone this season? We shall wait and see.