Champions League: Chelsea Can Expect a Frosty Reception in Russia

Zenit St. Petersburg vs Chelsea

Chelsea round up their 2021/22 Champions League group campaign with a trip to St Petersburg on Wednesday; it could be chilly and hosts Zenit will be ready.

The Russian Premier League outfit is unlikely to extend a warm welcome to the Blues. This is a dead rubber, but Zenit will be keen to extend a five-match unbeaten run, while their visitors arrive on the back of a 3-2 defeat to West Ham.

Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea are through to the Round of 16 having qualified on 12 points. But they are tied with Juventus at the top, and that is their incentive to win their final game. Meanwhile, Zenit St Petersburg booked their place in the Europa League with a 1-1 draw against Malmo in November.

The latest Champions League 2021 betting odds place the Blues as fourth favourites, behind Manchester City, FC Bayern and Liverpool, so Tuchel will push his team to maintain momentum on the European front. 

Talking Points

Zenit are Russian heavyweights

Is there a case for Zenit winning this tie at SBOTOP odds of 5.41?  Well, they are unbeaten in five games since they lost 4-2 away to Juventus. They also currently sit top of the Russian Premier League on 37 points, two clear of Dynamo Moscow and a further seven ahead of third-placed Krasnodar.

Head coach Sergey Semak has plenty of experience in his ranks. The Russians are skippered by former Liverpool centre-back Dejan Lovren alongside Ukrainian star Yaroslav Rakitskiy, who scored a late penalty to give Zenit the 1-1 draw away to Malmo. He also has two assists in the competition. The Russians will be without defender Dmitri Chisyakov who received two yellow cards in Sweden.

And Zenit have 6ft 6in striker Artem Dzyuba up front, alongside Brazilian Malcom. The former Barcelona man has scored ten goals in 45 games for Zenit and is a useful foil for Dzyuba.   

Chelsea need a boost

After a brilliant start to the season, the Blues have been flagging in the league and lost to West Ham on Saturday.

Manager Tuchel is determined to see his team bounce back and sort out their current problems: “There is no need to question the big picture and no need for major doubts,” he told fans. “In my opinion … it’s about details. That’s why I think we can sort it out straight away. Nobody wants to make mistakes but it won’t help if we just say, ‘Hey, don’t make mistakes anymore.’ We need to be better in decision-making in crucial moments … to be able to have clean sheets or concede a maximum of one.”

The Blues had only conceded six goals in their first 14 league games, so to ship three against the Hammers came as something of a shock. The boss was also critical of his own decision to bring Romelu Lukaku on in place of the injured Kai Havertz. The big Belgian has only just returned from an ankle injury himself and he looked short of match fitness.

Lukaku has been out for a month and his rehabilitation might just take a little longer.  

Chelsea have led the league for much of the early season but they now sit third, behind Manchester City and Liverpool.  The Blues have two home Premier League fixtures to come, against Leeds United and Everton, and Tuchel will be keen to have as many of his stars fit as possible.

History

Chelsea are six-time winners of the English top flight and won the Champions League for the second time in 2021. Meanwhile, Zenit have been Russian champions eight times and for the last three seasons running. They have enjoyed European success too, winning the UEFA Cup (forerunner of the Europa League) in 2008. 

In the only previous meeting, Chelsea won their home game against Zenit 1-0 as Lukaku finally breached the Zenit defence, heading home a cross from Cesar Azpilicueta, though Dzyuba almost levelled when he met a low cross from Sardar Azmoun late in the game.

Betting Tip

	Zenit St. Petersburg vs Chelsea	Under 2.50 @ 2.05
	December 9, 01:45 (GMT+8)

We’ll be back with more Champions League 2021 updates as the week goes on but in the meantime, Chelsea at 1.52 to win this game should come through. I can see a low-scoring affair between the hosts who are hard to break down, and the visitors who want their own defence to get back to top form.

Chelsea’s shortage of fit strikers means most likely result is 0-1 at odds of 5.99, but I wouldn’t rule out a draw at odds of 4.07, and a 1-1 finish is worth a look at a price of 7.33.

 

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