A Europa League game on anything other than a Thursday night should be illegal should it not? Well that is not the case in Moscow as Spartak will be hosting Leicester on Wednesday afternoon with the Foxes most definitely in the need for all 3 points. Brendan Rodgers side have only taken one point from their opening two clashes, while their Russian hosts have one win and one loss to boast in Group C so far. It was much more like it from Leicester at the weekend as they deservedly beat Manchester United 4-2 in a thrilling game at the King Power. They were back to their energetic best and completely smothered United throughout who simply couldn’t live with their intense pressing game. Rodgers is likely to rotate once more as he often does in Europe with the 34 year old Jamie Vardy amongst some others expected to be handed a breather. As ever, below are my four favourite Bet Builder tips for the game in Moscow. I have conducted my own research as well as referring to my Cheat Sheet and hope you make use of both when building your own bets for the game.
Spartak Moscow v Leicester Bet Builder tips
Patson Daka to have 2+ Shot on Target v Spartak Moscow
I was very excited to see Daka come to the Premier League having raved about his qualities for a number of years during his time with Salzburg. He has shown glimpses of his talents but needs more game time to really show Foxes fans what a player they have on their hands. His goal against United at the weekend is sure to give him plenty of confidence and almost all sources tip him to start in this one. On his goal at the weekend he said ”It meant so much to me for my confidence, and it’s something that I’ve been looking forward to.” He will be keen to shine once more tonight as he looks to play his way into the manager’s thinking. He bagged 34 goals last season for Salzburg and although his minutes have been sparse, from what I have seen he looks sharp and I fancy him to impress here. Unfortunately, we can’t refer to the Cheat Sheet on this one due to his lack of minutes but using his Salzburg stats as a guide, over the past two seasons he has averaged 2.26 shots on target per 90 and I fancy him to do the business here.
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Patson Daka to have 2+ Shot on Target v Spartak Moscow @ 2.2 at Paddy Power
Aleksandr Sobolev to have 1+ Shot on Target v Leicester
At 6 foot 3 he is played as a target man and will be particularly important tonight as he will be tasked with holding up the ball to the best of his ability against a far superior opponent. He isn’t the most prolific of goalscorers but his ability to hold up play makes him vital in the way Spartak like to play and he is likely to play 90 minutes tonight with several other attacking options injured in the shape of Quincy Promes, Ezequiel Ponce and Georgi Melkadze.
His hefty frame makes him an enormous threat, particularly from set-pieces and crossed balls from out wide which is very much a regular occurrence with Victor Moses expected to start at wing back. Referring to the Cheat Sheet you can see he averages a very respectable 0.81 shots on target per game from the 3.25 shots he attempts and at a price of 1.4 looks decent value.
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Aleksandr Sobolev to have 1+ Shot on Target v Leicester @ 1.4 at Paddy Power
Roman Zobnin to be Booked v Leicester
We finish on a card and I will look to Spartak midfielder Roman Zobnin to get in the referee’s notebook in this one. Leicester are likely to dominate the game, both in terms of possession and territory meaning the hosts are going to spend the brunt of the game without the ball. Zobnin will therefore have ample opportunities to make tackles and inevitably commit fouls against an extremely talented and tricky Leicester midfield. He has already picked up 2 bookings this season domestically and commits on average 1.43 fouls per game. Up against the likes of Tielemans, Soumare, Daka and Iheanacho as direct opponents who as you can see are some of the most fouled players at Leicester, he really does look the prime suspect for a card here.
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Roman Zobnin to be Shown a Card v Leicester @ 3.3 at Paddy Power
Spartak Moscow v Leicester Predicted Line-ups
Spartak Moscow v Leicester Leipzig Cheat Sheet
* All odds displayed correct at the time of publishing *
How to watch Spartak Moscow v Leicester in the Europa League
📅 When is Spartak Moscow v Leicester? / Wednesday, 20 October 2021, 15:30 BST
🏟 Where is Spartak Moscow v Leicester? / Otkritie Arena (Moscow)
📺 What TV Channel is Spartak Moscow v Leicester on? / BT Sport 2
📱 Online Live Streaming for Spartak Moscow v Leicester / bet365
🟨 …And who is the referee for Spartak Moscow v Leicester? / Anastasios Sidiropoulos 🇬🇷
