| UEFA Cup Final Prediction: Zenit St Petersburg vs Glasgow Rangers |
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| Written by Scott Burgess | |||||||
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Tuesday, 13 May 2008
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 The UEFA Cup Final between FC Zenit St Petersburg and Glasgow Rangers FC takes place Wednesday May 14 at the City of Manchester Stadium, in England. The offense of St Petersburg and the strong defense of the Rangers is going to make for a hell of a UEFA Cup Final. Oddsmakers at Betway.com have Zenit St Petersburg as 1.60 favorites to win the UEFA Cup over the Glasgow Rangers who are listed as 2.20 underdogs. Get your UEFA Cup Prediction in now at Betway.comThis is Zenit’s first UEFA Cup final and they received a major blow to their offense after top striker and goal scorer Pavel Pogrebnyak has been suspended for the final. He received his third booking after dismantling Bayern Munich 4-0. There are two key factors that have Zenit as favorites. The first is their hugely impressive two-legged victory over Bayern Munich in the semi-final. To go to Munich and get a score-draw against a re-emerging Bayern team (who are 10 points clear in the Bundesliga by the way) was an achievement in itself, but to demolish them 4-0 in the return leg was simply incredible. The second factor that should point towards a Zenit victory is freshness. The Russian Premier League allowed Zenit to cancel some fixtures to help them prepare them for this game, the SPL didn't allow Rangers the same privilege. Adrenalin and the occasion should give the Rangers player a boost, but if at any stage they fall behind and need to chase the game I think their recent exertions will take their toll. Get your UEFA Cup Prediction in now at Betway.com The Rangers will be making their fourth appearance in the UEFA Cup Final, their only triumph came in 1972 against FC Dinamo. The Rangers have a killer defense with David Weir and Carlos Cuellar being outstanding throughout the campaign. Out of their eight UEFA Cup fixtures, the Rangers have kept six clean sheets and had four 0-0 draws. Rangers will have to keep a careful eye on Zenit playmaker Andrei Arshavin who will be at the heart of all his team's attacks. In the SPL the Rangers are in second place just four points back from first place Celtic FC with two games left. To win the UEFA Cup would give them a huge boost to win the SPL Title. Another good thing for the Rangers is the experience and winning ways of Coach Dick Advocaat. He won two Scottish Premier League titles in four years at Ibrox and he’s coached in Holland, Scotland, Germany, the United Arab Emirates, South Korea and now Russia. He was Champion in Scotland, Russia and Holland. England may be his next stop. Scottish clubs have had the better of encounters with Russian teams, their combined record reading W7-D5-L1. FC Zenit St Petersburg vs Glasgow Rangers FC When: Wed, May 14, 2008 2:45 PM ET Line: Betway.com Pick: Zenit 1.60 The Bottom Line: Anything can happen in UEFA Cup Final action. The Rangers will have more fans in Manchester as Zenit fans are much farther away. It's still going to be a crazy atmosphere. The Rangers can stop offenses but can they provide offense themselves. Get your UEFA Cup Prediction in now at Betway.com                        |
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| Last Updated ( Tuesday, 13 May 2008 ) | |||||||