Spartak Moscow left Kaliningrad with all three points after a 2-1 win over Baltika in the Premier Liga. Manfred Ugalde gave them an early lead, and although Andrey Mendel levelled within three minutes, Pablo Solari's goal just after the break proved decisive. Spartak had far more of the ball but were outshot by the home side.
The opener came in the 20th minute when Ugalde finished from Mirlind Daku's assist. Baltika responded quickly, Mendel scoring unassisted in the 23rd to make it 1-1. Solari struck in the 49th minute to put Spartak back in front, and the visitors saw out the win despite a flurry of late yellow cards.
The statistics tell a tale of two approaches: Baltika had 12 shots to Spartak's six, yet Spartak created two big chances and scored both. The visitors also had 65% possession and made 381 accurate passes to Baltika's 139. Ugalde scored the opener and was later booked.
