Chelyabinsk vs Spartak Kostroma

Chelyabinsk head into this one in 12th place with seven points from eight rounds, well off the pace they'd want. S. Kostroma, by contrast, sit fifth on 12 points, continuing the encouraging form that's made them one of the league's early surprises. Kostroma's rise has a lot to do with Amur Kalmykov, who has already scored 14 goals in just 16 appearances this season, matching a club record it once took another player 76 games to set. Chelyabinsk's form has been shakier: a 4-1 defeat to Rotor and a 0-4 loss were sandwiched around a battling 1-1 draw at Leningradets, where forward Ilya Safronov got on the scoresheet. The two clubs don't have a notable recent head-to-head, so this fixture arrives with little history to lean on. Kostroma's scoring form gives them the edge on paper, but Chelyabinsk at home should make it tight. Our prediction: 1-2