Ufa vs Torpedo Moskva

Ufa host Torpedo Moscow in a First League clash between two mid-table sides eyeing the promotion picture. Torpedo sit 6th with 20 points from 11 games, three clear of 8th-placed Ufa, so both clubs have real incentive to close the gap between them. Torpedo arrive full of confidence, winning three of their last five, including a 3-0 win over Spartak Kostroma and a 4-1 win at Tekstilshchik, though Nizhny Novgorod beat them 2-1 most recently. Aleksey Kashtanov leads their attack with 6 goals, ahead of Dmitri Tsypchenko (5) and Aleksandr Yushin (4). Ufa have been shakier, taking just two wins from five and falling 2-1 to FC Chelyabinsk last time out, with Dilan Ortíz their top scorer on 5 goals. The head-to-head is tight too — Ufa have won 4 of the 13 meetings since 2012 to Torpedo's 1, with 8 draws, a fixture that historically produces stalemates more often than not. Our prediction: 1-1