Zenit St Petersburg vs Bordeaux Predictions

Bordeaux have been pretty average in Ligue 1 this season as they currently sit 8th but they still have 28 games to put these errors right; in the Europa League they don’t have such a comfort as they have still to get a point on the table and risk being left behind by the other teams if they don’t get a positive result here.

Eric Bedouet and Ricardo Gomes are currently operating in a kind of duel-manager set-up with Bedouet as the head coach and Gomes as the general manager. This might seem quite confusing to read but it has proved much more challenging to play under. Bordeaux have only won one of their last four games and are still pointless in the Europa League.

They came up against probably the weakest team in the group in Slavia Praha but fell to a 1-0 defeat in the Czech Republic. Many of the passing and possession statistics were very similar but the Czechs managed six shots on target compared to Bordeaux’s single strike. The Girondins were slightly better at home to Copenhagen but still trailed until the 84th minute before conceding again in the 92nd. They had the better possession and shooting statistics but lacked the mentality to hold on until the final whistle.

They had a chance at the weekend to really flex their muscles against a side of similar quality in Montpellier but ultimately didn’t turn up for the game, losing 2-0 despite having almost 60% of the possession. Francois Kamano is their only real threat in front of goal and if he doesn’t get any support then Bordeaux could falter again against Zenit.

The Russians have been disappointing in the league recently with finishes ranging from 3rd to 5th in the last three years. The success under Luciano Spaletti and Andre Villas-Boas hasn’t been matched by Micrea Lusescu and Roberto Mancini but Sergey Semak has worked wonders in his brief stint in charge as he has them sitting top of the table. The young Russian is only in his second permanent managerial job but he has really flourished so far. Zenit currently sit six points clear at the top after 11 games and got a big win in the game before last when they beat FC Krasnodar 2-1. Krasnodar are Zenit’s biggest title threat at the moment so for Semak’s men to come out of this game unscathed was massive.

They had a good international break to recoup their ideas but failed to hit the ground running again as they blew a chance to extend their lead at the top with a 1-0 loss away to mid-table Dynamo Moscow. This should have been an easy game but Sebastien Driussi’s 37th minute red card really killed the game for Zenit. This was quite the challenge for the inexperienced Semak and one that he ultimately failed at, but it was a lesson that he’ll never forget and the ambitious manager will definitely have learned from it.

For someone so youthful in their managerial career, it is rare to be taking part in Europa League competition but Semak’s side will definitely be raring to go for this one as they have done in their other games so far (1D+1W). They have only lost one of their last 29 home games, a record that stretches back to November of last year, so Zenit will be glad to have this game at the Krestovsky Stadium. They have only lost four of their last 24 games, but half of those losses have come in the last four games which is quite worrying for Semak. Luckily, they are facing a team in equally as poor form with just one win in their last four games and no points in Europe. Zenit have been so strong at home recently and with Bordeaux so poor on the road (only one win in their last seven games away), we’re going to back a Russian win in this one. Zenit have conceded in six of their last eight games though so we’re expecting Bordeaux to get a goal in this one, especially if Francois Kamano shows his true colours.