Sochi took all three points against Neftekhimik in the seventh round of the First League, winning 2-1 at home on Thursday evening. The result keeps Sochi third in the table while Neftekhimik remain in 12th place after nine matches. We had tipped the visitors to win, and at 50 per cent confidence we got it right — not that the game made it easy to call.
Marcelo Alves opened the scoring in the 29th minute, finishing off a move that had been building since the halfway stage. R. Magal levelled before the break, a goal that caught Neftekhimik's defence on the edge of the penalty area. And here's the thing — Sochi's lead came after a period of sustained pressure rather than a single flash of brilliance.
I. Mashukov restored Sochi's advantage in the 60th minute, and that was when the game began to unravel for the hosts. V. Litvinov went off in the 70th minute after picking up a second yellow, and M. Sukhoruchenko followed him out five minutes later with his own red card. By then Neftekhimik were playing with ten men and running out of ideas.
Neftekhimik registered five shots on target to Sochi's four, but possession told the story — 44 per cent to 56. The visitors worked more corners, five to two, and won more free kicks, 15 to 12. Three red cards in the second half meant the match ended with both sides reduced to ten men, which perhaps explains why neither side pushed for a third goal.
Sochi's victory extends their recent form, having won their last two league games against Volga Ulyanovsk and Torpedo Moscow. Neftekhimik's run of defeats continues, with losses to Shinnik Yaroslavl and Nizhny Novgorod in their previous outings. The gap between the sides in the table now stands at ten points, and for Neftekhimik that is becoming a concern.