Kuban Krasnodar will look to get off to a solid start in the Europa League when it takes on St. Gallen on Thursday.
The team has gotten off to a decent start in the Russian League in 2013-14. On July 14, the team opened up with a 1-1 draw against Rubin Kazan. A week later, Krasnodar defeated FK Tom' Tomsk before tying with Zenit St. Petersburg. On Aug. 4, the team also earned a valuable point in a 2-2 draw with Spartak Moscow. However, the point streak came to an end when CSKA Moscow took them down 1-0 on Aug. 18. Fortunately Kuban Krasnodar bounced back with a 3-2 win over Ural and a 0-0 draw with PFK Samara Kryliya Sovetov. In its most recent match, the team lost 1-0 against Lokomotiv Moscow.
In its Europa League qualifiers, the Russian side defeated Motherwell 3-0 through two games before having to take on Feyenoord Rotterdam. Once more, Krasnodar won both legs by a combined 3-1 aggregate score.
Swiss side St. Gallen only had one round of qualifiers; the team drew 1-1 with Spartak Moscow at home on Aug. 22 but pulled through thanks to a stunning 4-2 victory on the road; Goran Karanovic scored twice for the club, while Dejan Janjatovic and Rodriguez added the other tallies in the match.
Prediction: Krasnodar is the favorite in this match, but will face a tough hill to climb on the road. St. Gallen is likely confident in its chances after taking down another Russia side in the qualifying playoff and should win at home 1-0.
Start Time: 1 p.m. EST
Watch Live Stream HERE.
- Contribute to this Story:
- Send us a tip
- Send us a photo or video
- Suggest a correction
