Spartak vs Krasnodar: the main facts before the Russian Cup Superfinal

Spartak and Krasnodar will play in the FONBET Superfinal of the Russian Cup on Sunday, May 24. The meeting will take place at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, and the starting whistle will sound at 18:00 Moscow time. The winner of the match will receive the last major trophy of the Russian football season. All the details about the shape of the teams, statistics and key facts before the game are in the Izvestia material.

Form of commands

Spartak is approaching the superfinal after an ambiguous stretch of the season. In the last five matches, Dejan Stankovic's team has won three, drawn once and suffered one defeat. During this period, the red and white beat Paris NN (2:1), CSKA (1:0) and Rubin (2:1), lost to Krylia Sovetov (1:2), and also drew with Dynamo Makhachkala (0:0).

Krasnodar has won three times in the last five matches, lost once and reached the superfinal of the Russian Cup after defeating Dynamo Moscow in a penalty shootout. Murad Musaev's team beat Orenburg (3:0), Akron (1:0) and Dynamo Makhachkala (2:1), while losing to Dynamo Moscow in the championship (1:2). In the Russian Cup, Krasnodar went blue and white after a goalless draw and a penalty shootout - 6:5

The leaders of the season

John Cordoba remains one of Krasnodar's main players. The striker finished the RPL season as the top scorer of the championship. An important role in organizing attacks is played by Eduard Spertsyan, who became one of the leaders of the season in assists.

Spartak's performance during the season was distributed among several players. Ruslan Litvinov, Manfred Ugalde, Roman Zobnin, Christopher Martins, Marquinhos and Ezequiel Barco played an important role in the red-white game.

Barco's participation may be a separate factor before the superfinal. The Argentine midfielder missed some matches of the spring part of the season, but remains one of the key players of the Moscow club, Sport-Express added.

Personal meeting statistics

The teams have met twice this RPL season. Both matches ended with victories for Krasnodar — 2:1 and 2:1. The last game took place on April 23 in Moscow. Then the Krasnodar club achieved victory on the opponent's field. At the same time, the history of the confrontations in the Russian Cup is in favor of the Moscow team. In previous cup meetings, Spartak more often achieved a positive result.

Another factor is the location of the match. Luzhniki remains one of the most important arenas for Spartak. It was here that the team won the Russian Cup in 2022.

Match value and predictions

For Krasnodar, the upcoming superfinal will be an opportunity to win the Russian Cup for the first time. For Spartak, this is a chance to add another national trophy to the club's collection.

Football commentator Konstantin Genich noted that Krasnodar retains high potential, despite the unsuccessful finish of the championship. According to the expert, the team is able to show a different level of play compared to the last meetings.

"If we start from Krasnodar's potential, then it definitely won't be as rotten as in the last match of the teams. But will Spartak be the same as in most games in the spring? It seems to me that Krasnodar will win. A season where finishing without a trophy would be the ultimate injustice," he predicted.

Former Khimki defender Alexei Nikitin also said that there is no clear favorite before the superfinal, and the first goal scored may be a key factor.