Lokomotiva Zagreb vs Rudes Prediction: Lokomotiva should easily win against city rival

Rudes are still waiting for his first win in the HNL this season and things are not looking very optimistic against the city rival. Both teams had a bad start to the season and are at the very bottom of the table, so today the points in this duel are of double value. Locomotiva are traditionally inconvenient opponent for Rudes, which can be seen from the given odds. When Rudes were part of this league in 2018 and 2019, as a rule, they did not have a good time against Lokos, who won four times in the last five meetings with one draw.

Form: WWDLL

After six games played, Lokomotiva achieved only one win, three draws, and two defeats, and with a total of six points won, they are near the bottom of the table in eighth place. Nevertheless, they welcome today's mini-city derby at Kranjceviceva stadium with a new dose of self-confidence, because before the international break, they finally reached their first celebration, away to Slaven Belupo. As usual, Lokomotiva were quite active on the market. Like every year, it is difficult to list the number of players who left them and those who were brought in, but certainly, the most famous transfers are those they made with Dinamo, where very important players Sandro Kulenovic and Lukas Kacavenda left.

Form: LDLLL

As a newly promoted team that returned to the first league after relegation four years ago, not much was expected from Rudes as the main candidate for relegation. So far, Rudes have "justified" all expectations and as the worst team in the HNL are in the last position with only one point won from seven rounds. In the announcement of the season under the leadership of the new manager, the legendary Robert Prosinecki, it looked like Rudes could be very unpleasant for everyone and surprise some clubs, but that did not happen and in the end, Prosineski lost his temper, and decided to end the cooperation by mutual agreement. The new manager Toni Golem has a big and demanding job of saving the club, but as he says there are still 87 points for taking, so there is still hope for Rudes.

Four full years have passed since the last match between Lokomotiva and Rudes, and if we look at the head-to-head matches, it is clear that Lokomotiva were dominant and that Rudes never defeated their city rival. Both teams are playing poorly at the start of the season, but Lokomotiva managed to get their first win in the last round, something Rudes still haven’t managed to do. Rudes have big problems with efficiency, they have not shaken the net in the last four games. Lokomotiva are an unrivaled quality team and will know how to take advantage of that and reach their second win of the season. For many years, Lokomotiva has been known as one of the most efficient teams in the league, and already this season the outlines of their efficiency can be seen because after six games they are averaging 2.8 goals per game. We can expect highly efficient match and a home win.