The Matchday 1 clash of the FONBET Russian Cup 2025/26 between Akron and Baltika will take place on July 29 at the Solidarity Samara Arena. Akron vs. Baltika: prediction and betting odds, statistics.
Akron
This will be the team's second participation in the group stage of the RPL Path of the Russian Cup. Last season, Akron progressed to the Regions Path after finishing third in their group. The Tolyatti team managed to overcome Shinnik in the first playoff round (1-0), but fell short against Spartak Moscow in the next stage (2-3). Notably, in their last 19 matches in the national Cup, the club has lost in regular time only five times (10 wins, 4 draws).
- The team has not lost in regular time in 8 of their last 11 home matches in the Russian Cup (6 wins, 2 draws).
- No more than two goals have been scored in 90 minutes in 4 of the last 5 home games of the club in this tournament.
- The Tolyatti side scored exactly 1 or 2 goals in regular time in 7 of their last 10 home matches in the national Cup.
Predicted lineup for Akron (4-5-1)
Vitaly Gudiev – Roberto Fernandez, Ionuts Nedelcharu, Marat Bokoev, Konstantich Savichev – Dmitry Pestriakov, Ifet Djakovac, Khetag Khosonov, Stefan Lonchar, Alexa Djurashovic – Artem Dzyuba.
Baltika
The Kaliningrad team will start their second appearance in the Russian Cup from the group stage of the RPL Path. Their first participation in the 2023/24 season was successful – the team reached the final, where they put up a strong fight against Zenit, but ultimately lost 1-2. However, in the previous edition of this tournament, the club stopped at the sixth round of the Regions Path, losing to Ural (0-1). It is noteworthy that in their last six matches in the national Cup, the Kaliningrad team lost in regular time only twice (3 wins, 1 draw) and conceded only four goals during this period.
- Exactly 2 or 3 goals were scored in 90 minutes in 5 of the last 7 away matches of the team in the national Cup.
- The club's players scored in regular time in 7 of the previous 8 away matches in this tournament.
- The Kaliningrad team did not concede more than one goal in 90 minutes in 5 of the last 7 away matches in the Russian Cup.
Predicted lineup for Baltika (4-5-1)
Maxim Borisko – Amar Mohhamad, Mingiyan Beveev, Kevin Andrade, Nathan Gassama – Sergey Pryakhin, Andrey Mendel, Daniil Utkin, Yuri Kovalev, Maxim Petrov – Bryan Gil.
Akron vs. Baltika: Match Prediction
Home cup matches have been challenging for Tolyatti recently. In the last edition of the national Cup, Akron managed only one home victory, which came against Fakel. Overall, in their last five home matches in the Russian Cup, the team suffered three defeats and drew once. Notably, during this period, the club even lost to Volgar.
Baltika, on the other hand, has been performing quite successfully away in the national Cup: in their last ten away matches, the team lost only twice (5 wins, 3 draws). It is worth mentioning that during this period, the Kaliningrad team defeated opponents who are usually strong at home: Rostov, Krylya Sovetov, Akhmat. The two losses during this period were against CSKA and Zenit, with the club even managing to compete against the latter, losing narrowly 1-2.
I expect the Kaliningrad team to showcase their strengths and at least not lose in regular time. My prediction: Baltika to win or draw
