The head of the press service for Moscow’s Spartak, Dmitry Zelenov, explained the absence of defender Nikita Chernov and forward Livai Garcia from the squad for the match against Makhachkala’s Dynamo in the first round of the Russian Premier League. This game is set to take place today, July 19, with a kickoff at 20:30 Moscow time.

“Chernov and Garcia are still in recovery,” Zelenov’s comments were shared by Championship correspondent Ilya Nikulnikov.

In the last season of the Russian Premier League, Spartak finished in fourth place, while Dynamo from Makhachkala secured the 11th spot. For the first time in its history, the championship title was claimed by Krasnodar.