The Belarusian Premier League prepares to enter its eighth gameweek amid the coronavirus pandemic, as Slavia Mozyr play host to early high-flyers Torpedo-BelAZ on Saturday afternoon.
Both teams will be looking to build upon victories on the road last weekend, as Slavia defeated Vitebsk 3-2 while Torpedo overcame Dinamo Minsk 5-2 last time out.
Match preview
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Slavia ended a run of three consecutive defeats in all competitions against Vitebsk last Saturday, with substitute Maksym Slyusar netting twice in the final five minutes to secure a 3-2 victory.
That result leaves Slavia eighth in the table heading into gameweek number eight, ironically the same position that Mihail Martsinovich's side ended up last season.
Prior to their narrow victory over Vitebsk, Slavia suffered a crushing blow in the Belarusian Cup as they bowed out in the semi finals to BATE Borisov, as the 15-time champions overcame Martsinovich's men 2-0 after a 1-0 defeat in the first leg.
Nevertheless, Slavia can now focus their attention entirely on the Vysheyshaya Liga as they look to build on last season's first top-half finish since 2001.
Interestingly, Slavia are one of only two sides in the division to have scored and conceded at least 10 goals thus far, the other being FC Minsk.
Minsk were the most recent side to defeat Martsinovich's men at the Stadyen Junatsva, but Slavia had won three of their last four fixtures on home soil prior to that 3-1 loss.
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Meanwhile, Torpedo have continued their surge towards the top of the table as they sit two points adrift of early leaders Slutsk.
Yuri Puntus's side had suffered two goalless draws against BATE and Rukh Brest prior to their 5-2 drubbing of Minsk, but Torpedo returned to winning ways thanks to Valery Gorbachik's hat-trick.
The 25-year-old had not found the net since the second gameweek of the season before last weekend's victory, but Gorbachik now leads the way in the Vysheyshaya Liga top scorer chart with four strikes from seven outings.
Despite their impressive five-goal haul against Minsk, Torpedo have largely struggled for goals on the road in recent times, as Puntus's side have failed to find the net in three of their last five away outings.
Nevertheless, Torpedo have been full value for their impressive start to the campaign, and they will no doubt be looking to finish the campaign in the top three for the first time in their history.
Slavia Mozyr Vysheyshaya Liga form: WWDLLW
Slavia Mozyr form (all competitions): WDLLLW
Torpedo-BelAZ Vysheyshaya Liga form: WLWDDW
Head To Head
Saturday's clash represents the 23rd meeting between the two sides in all competitions, with Slavia recording seven wins compared to Torpedo's 12.
However, Slavia have not tasted success against their opponents since 2015, with a 1-1 draw in August ending a run of six defeats on the bounce for Martsinovich's side against Torpedo.
We say: Slavia 1-2 Torpedo
Torpedo boast the superior record against Slavia heading into Saturday's clash, and Puntus's men have accumulated an impressive set of results early on in the season. As a result, we are backing the away side to take the spoils and continue their strong run of form.
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