The Matchday 7 clash in the Russian Premier League between Zenit and Pari NN will take place on August 30 at the Gazprom Arena in St. Petersburg. Zenit vs. Pari NN: prediction and betting odds, statistics.
Zenit
Sergei Semak's team ended a four-match winless streak in the league (3 draws, 1 loss) with a 4-0 victory over Dynamo Makhachkala in the previous round. Additionally, this was Zenit's first clean sheet in the 2025/26 RPL season. The team has scored at least two goals in 5 of their last 7 Premier League matches. In the standings, Zenit has climbed to 6th place, but among the top half, only three teams have conceded more goals than Zenit.
- At least three goals have been scored in 5 of Zenit's last 7 league games.
- Zenit has won 7 of their last 8 home matches in the RPL (1 draw).
- At least one goal has been scored in both halves in Zenit's last 5 home league matches.
Projected lineup for Zenit (4-5-1)
Denis Adamov – Vanya Drkusic, Strahinja Erakovic, Yuri Gorshkov, Gustavo Mantuan – Pedro Henrique, Wilmar Barrios, Wendel, Luis Henrique, Andrey Mostovoy – Alexander Sobolev.
Defender Vyacheslav Karavaev is injured. Midfielder Sasha Zdjelar has left the team.
Pari NN
In the previous round, Nizhny Novgorod suffered a 0-3 defeat away to Dynamo Moscow. This was the team's fifth loss in the current championship (1 win), with Alexey Shpilevskiy's team failing to score in four of those matches. Pari NN has scored only 4 goals, with only Sochi having a worse record (3). The team has conceded in 9 of their last 10 RPL matches and is currently in 15th place in the standings.
- At least one opponent has failed to score in 6 of Pari NN's last 7 Premier League matches.
- Pari NN conceded first in 7 of their last 8 league matches.
- The team has lost 11 consecutive away matches in this tournament.
Projected lineup for Pari NN (4-4-2)
Nikita Medvedev – Luka Tichic, Maxim Shnapcev, Sven Karic, Vadim Pigas – Mamadou Maiga, Olakunle Olusegun, Nikolai Kalinsky, Daniil Lesovoy – Thiago Vecino, Vyacheslav Grulev.
Defender Alexander Ektov is injured. Forward Juan Boselli is suspended.
Referee
Sergey Ivanov (Russia)
Matches – 15 (RPL, 2024/25 - 2025/26);
Yellow cards shown (including second yellows) – 53;
Average yellow cards per match – 3.5;
Red cards shown – 3;
Average fouls per match – 28;
Penalties – 33%.
Zenit vs. Pari NN: Match Prediction
After a challenging period in the Premier League, Sergei Semak's side secured an easy victory over Makhachkala, who are just two points ahead of Zenit's closest rivals. It seems that Zenit will head into the league break in high spirits, as the current Pari NN is unlikely to provide significant resistance to the hosts.
Nizhny Novgorod's only victory in the 2025/26 RPL came against the aforementioned Makhachkala. That win was achieved at home, where Pari NN manages to collect some points. However, the team is on an 11-match losing streak away in the league. During this period, they failed to score in 9 matches, and their best forward will miss the upcoming game.
Zenit has defeated Pari NN in their last 6 head-to-head encounters in the Premier League, conceding just one goal. At home, Zenit allows very little at their goal: in their last 9 RPL matches, they have not conceded more than one goal. Only twice during this period have they dropped points.
My prediction: Zenit to win and Total under 3.5 goals
