Shakhter’s newcomers face their former club, Kairat take on Aktobe: Matchweek 3 preview of the flagship tournament

Shakhter vs Astana

The clash in Karaganda will be a real test for both sides. Last season, Astana and Shakhter shared the podium with Kairat in the flagship tournament, finishing second and third respectively.

However, in the 2009 age group, the gap was much more noticeable: Shakhter won bronze, while Astana finished only ninth. Both head-to-head meetings also went in favor of the “miners” – 3:2 and 1:0.

This year, Shakhter have registered two former Astana players for the flagship tournament – Alen Pak and Daniyal Nazarov. The latter has already featured in the first two weeks and could face his former club.

Taraz vs Irtysh

A meeting between two bottom-placed sides after Matchweek 2 gives at least one team a chance to get off zero points. Combined, the two teams have scored just three goals so far – only one of them from open play.

Kaisar vs Zhas Kyran

Kyzylorda’s side have played only one match so far, as their Matchweek 2 game against the KFF Academy was postponed to May 30. Their home game against Tobol at Kaisar Arena ended in a narrow win, and now Kaisar have a chance to prove that result was no fluke.

Zhas Kyran, meanwhile, won both of their opening matches, though not without difficulty – beating KFF Academy 3:2 and Taraz 4:2. To secure another win, the Almaty side will need not only to score, but also to be solid defensively.

Caspiy vs Tobol

Caspiy lost both of their opening matches, but by narrow 1:2 margins each time.

Tobol, after losing to Kaisar, defeated Ordabasy 2:0. However, the scoreline is somewhat misleading: their first goal came from the penalty spot, while the second was scored only in the final minutes. Ordabasy had significantly more shots (19 to 5, including 7 to 3 on target), making this matchup hard to predict.

Kairat vs Aktobe

The youth version of one of Kazakhstan’s biggest football rivalries promises to be exciting.

In the opening round, Aktobe narrowly lost to Ordabasy (1:2) after a brace from Adiyat Otarbek, but responded in Matchweek 2 with a win by the same scoreline, thanks to two goals from Azamat Mussayev. Kairat, meanwhile, sit comfortably at the top of the table with 16 goals scored and none conceded.

Last week, Kairat’s academy sides demolished Astana with an aggregate score of 21:0 across four age categories. The question now is – can they maintain that level against the “red-whites”?

Ordabasy vs KFF Academy

KFF Academy began their flagship tournament campaign with a narrow defeat to Zhas Kyran. Their Matchweek 2 fixture against Kaisar was postponed to May 30.

However, this does not mean a lack of match practice – on the contrary, many of their players represented Kazakhstan U-16 at the UEFA Development Tournament. Those matches were held in Shymkent, and now Yerlen Bekmukhayev’s side faces a final test before returning to Almaty.