Slutsk play host to Rukh Brest on Saturday afternoon looking to end their two-match losing streak in the Belarusian top flight.
Meanwhile, Rukh, on a six-match unbeaten run, can move level on points with their next opponents with victory this weekend.
Match preview
© Reuters
At one stage this season, Slutsk had been leading the way at the top of the standings, picking up 16 points from their opening seven fixtures.
However, back-to-back defeats, both against teams who now sit above them in the table, have left Slutsk with much to ponder as they battle to remain within touching distance of BATE Borisov.
The return to form of the nation's most illustrious club has upped the ante in the title race, leaving clubs like Slutsk to find a positive response sooner rather than later.
The biggest challenge for Vitaliy Pavlov is to solve his side's issues at the start of games, with four of the last five goals which they have conceded coming in the first half hour.
Striker Artem Serdyuk also has just one goal to his name in seven outings, leaving the Russian under pressure to keep his place in the team after his double at the beginning of the campaign.
As far as Rukh are concerned, they continue to enjoy a solid start to their debut season in the top flight, sitting comfortably in eighth position with just two defeats from nine games.
However, there will be a feeling that they should be higher in the table, especially having been held to a goalless draw by winless Smolevichi last weekend.
Remarkably, over half of Rukh's seven goals for the season have come in the same match, highlighting that they remain desperately ineffective in the final third.
Nevertheless, while they continue to boast one of the best defensive records in the division, Aleksandr Sednyov's team will remain out of any trouble with regards to the relegation zone.
Slutsk form: DWWWLL
Rukh Brest form: DWDDWD
Head To Head
With Rukh spending their first-ever campaign in the top flight, Saturday's match will represent the maiden clash between the two clubs.
We say: Slutsk 1-1 Rukh Brest
Given the manner of their most recent defeat, Slutsk may have lost some of their earlier confidence. Nevertheless, with Rukh inconsistent in the final third, we feel that a low-scoring draw is the most likely outcome.
Darren Plant
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Slutsk win with a probability of 37.12%. A win for Rukh Brest had a probability of 36.17% and a draw had a probability of 26.7%.
The most likely scoreline for a Slutsk win was 1-0 with a probability of 10.05%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.15%) and 2-0 (6.45%). The likeliest Rukh Brest win was 0-1 (9.89%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.69%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 12.7% likelihood.
