bangelov
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Posts posted by bangelov
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Ireland returns at the European Championship after suffering three defeats four years ago and this time Martin O’Neill's men should be more prepared. Furthermore they're once again in a group considered for a "group of death" and at least on paper "The Boys in Green" must open their Euro 2016 quest with a clash against the "weakest possible enemy" (as it comes to their seeding).
It will be really tough task for Ireland especially when they'll have to deal with Zlatan Ibrahimovic who's looking for another summer move, but he's fully focused at the Euro at this time. He scored a goal in all previous European Championships where Sweden participated and he even made it in each opening game for the Swedes - scoring against Bulgaria at Euro 2004, against Greece at Euro 2008 and the opening goal vs Ukraine four years ago. Thereafter Sweden lost.
Both teams finished third in their qualifying groups and they had to take part in the play-offs where we once again observed that Ireland's progress comes mostly because of the teamwork while Sweden depends on Ibrahimovic and his efforts with the Yellow-blue jersey.Pick: Over 2 Goals
Odd: 1.98 @ NetBet
Stake: (7/10)
I would rather been tempted by the proposed odds on "Over 2 Goals" here and after all low scoring affairs yesterday, I expect more goals from this clash. I'm not impressed by the Irish defense to be honest and despite the home wins against Germany and Bosnia (marked by clean sheets), they're still far from impressive when Ireland travels away.
More details over the game, squads, information about the pick, for all interested in the first Euro 2016 Group E game: Ireland vs SwedenPick 2: Zlatan Ibrahimovic Anytime Goalscorer
Odd: 2.55 @ BetVictor
Stake: 3/10 -
I'm tempted by the odds on "Both teams to score" but "Draw" seems like another option here. However, let me expose few thoughts on my prediction for the upcoming game number three at Euro 2016, which is also the first match from Group B.
Wales and Slovakia are two of all five debutants and they're surely in shadow of the other two sides in their group - Russia and England. Only three hours before group's derby in Marseille, Wales and Slovakia will meet for their third encounter, this time on neutral venue, in another French city but in the western part - Bordeaux. This game can mean too much for both teams who seem to be balanced and we won't be wrong if we describe them as "teams from the same caliber". Possible win will be a huge step and confidence boost before the next two games, while defeat can cost a lot.
Wales and Slovakia are similar for another reason as they both have one big name in the squad and if Gareth Bale is the one for "The Dragons", Napoli's play maker Marek Hamsik is the hearth of any Slovakian effort. Last example of that was the beautiful goal he scored in Germany and which influenced the marvelous comeback against "Die Mannschaft" - from 0:1 to 3:1. Great success which was part from Slovakia's unbeaten run - seventh in a row, but they're already eight and "The Repre" have 5 wins and three draws in that period.
Wales remains without a victory in 2016 and Chris Coleman's men suffered some defeats after closing their qualifying process. Even more, Wales lost by Sweden in their last friendly and the 0:3 defeat in Stockholm came in worst possible moment, only six days before their first ever game on the European Championship finals. Gareth Bale was engaged with his club team until late May as he lifted the Champions League trophy, so he took part in around 1/3 of that game, after he subbed Leicester City's Welsh midfielder Andy King.
This time I expect completely different face by the British team and I expect one fierce battle, which can be crucial for any further hopes of both sides.
Recommending the odds for goals by both teams - "Both teams to score - Yes". Great value and it surely deserves some stake. Slovakia were brilliant in their Euro 2016 preparation and they achieved some remarkable wins against the last two World Cup champions - Spain and Germany, but Wales have also shown they can be more competitive in the meaningful games.More analysis on the opening Group B game for all who are interested in Euro 2016: Wales vs Slovakia
Pick: Both teams to score - Yes.
Odd: 2.30 @ NetBet
Stake: (5/10) -
The centennial edition of Copa America hasn't been that impressive so far and except the last night's game between Mexico and Uruguay, all other games were clear "unders". Tonight, in the early morning hours European time, we have one of the most anticipated and thrilling games in the group stage which comes as a replay of the last match between both nations at major continental event. Of course, that game was preceded by the 2:1 win of Argentina (away in Chile, during Pizzi's coaching debut for "La Roja"), but their current Copa America tie is their first major game after the last year's final which Chile won on penalties. However, this time they'll meet on neutral ground and obviously there are few certain questions among all of us.
First of all - latest rumors are that Lionel Messi can miss the match tonight, so thus the odds for Argentina are raising. Indeed, we all know footballer from what quality Leo Messi is, but he's back from Spain where he had hearing in court about committing of tax fraud, but he's back in Argentina's base, although he's late with the training. This arouse some questions, but it's fully up to him - will he play tonight, or he'll miss the first Copa America Centenario game of “La Albiceleste”.
Second - what happens if Leo Messi misses the game tonight? Well, I won't rate it as such a blow since we all can easily open and find out what incredible selection Gerardo Martino has, and fact that player who made a superb season (Paulo Dybala) was left out from it. Di Maria, Lavezzi (maybe the most controversial name in current squad), Pastore, Nicolas Gaitan, Erik Lamela, Kun Agüero, Higuain are all decent options and even if Messi decides to start on the bench, we can easily obtain some information about Argentina's attacking opportunities. Trio with Di Maria, Aguero and Higuain seems possible, but we shouldn't exclude all others.
Moreover, Argentina's midfield provides some players in form - Ever Banega made one remarkable season, we also have the usual suspect there - Javier Mascherano, as well as few other players like both players from Diego Simeone's selection - Matías Kranevitter and Augusto Fernandez.
Third question - Argentina already won against Chile, should we expect another game influenced from the eager of taking a sweet revenge for the lost Copa America final one year ago? Well, yes. Why not? Argentina and Chile are most likely the teams that won't (or at least they shouldn't) struggle in group with teams like Panama and Bolivia. So this seems to be a first position decider, although they're meeting in the first round.
Fourth - perhaps the most important point in my mind. We all know what Jorge Sampaoli achieved with Chile and how he transformed the team. So apparently we should be thinking about the current prospects of Chile and here it comes the question - Was Juan Antonio Pizzi the most reliable person? Can he squeeze the potential out of his players, exactly like Sampaoli did? He fails to give positive answer of that question so far, but he probably needs some time. Nonetheless, Copa America 2016 is already here and he must gave these answers as soon as possible, on the field. My thoughts are that we'll have completely different Chile tonight, compared to their home campaign last summer.
So I will take and recommend the odds on Argentina, at least we can find good value in them and the game is at third country, on neutral venue. A good reason why victory for Argentina in its current odds deserves some credit.Pick: Argentina
Odd: 2.20 @ Netbet
Units: (5/10)
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1. FSV Mainz 05 vs 1. FC Köln
Mainz 05 have an outstanding opportunity not only to reach European football, but to make it in the Champions League. After Hertha's defeat in Saturday afternoon, Mainz are on four points behind "The Old Lady" and if they can earn all points from their round 30 clash against Köln, then the distance between both teams will be reduced on just one point. Sounds tempting? Well, Mainz already played against all top teams and they're not involved in the domestic cup, where meanwhile Hertha still are and they have very busy week in which they'll face against Borussia Dortmund and Bayern München, respectively in German Cup and in Bundesliga... real challenge for Hertha, especially if we consider their poor form. But anyway, I'm not here to discuss Hertha but to underline few reasons why I believe that Mainz 05 is a good bet.
Martin Schmidt's men have perhaps the best possible schedule if they want to compete for top 4 and after the home game vs Köln (12th), Mainz has four more games which are all against teams near or in the danger zone - Eintracht Frankfurt, HSV, Stuttgart and the icing on the cake - home match vs Hertha BSC in round 34.
Gladbach, Schalke, Hertha have all lost their round 30 games while only Leverkusen showed character as they won against Frankfurt, something which makes them the biggest and most reasonable favorite for third position, while the above mentioned trio (+ Mainz) will compete for the fourth position.
I definitely like the odds on a home win here. Mainz 05 can deal with "The Billy Goats". They show great home form in 2016 (4 wins and 1 draw) and they'll face against a team that looks pretty clueless, arriving without the suspended midfielder Leonardo Bittencourt.
Pick: Mainz 05
Odd: 2.10 @ William Hill
Stake: (5/10)Good luck!
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I also expect huge drama here and won't be surprised if we have the same scenario like last week - 2:2 or another high-scoring affair. I'd rather watching that game than Real's and I'm pretty sure that both multi-million selections will do their best to reach the semi-finals here.
David Luiz and Blaise Matuidi are both suspended names in PSG's list and if Luiz can be covered by Marquinhos here, I'm pretty sure that Matuidi's suspension is a significant blow for PSG, since he's the engine of both France national team and PSG, and it's not accidental that Didier Deschamps has stated that he starts picking his starting squad with Matuidi's name. Certainly a huge absence for Les Parisiens.
On other turn we have Man City which are the last English club and they must fight to return at least a bit of the Premier League reputation in Europe. Moreover, all money invested in the last years have won them domestic trophies but their owners are mostly keen of winning the Champions League, but the same goes for PSG...
Considering the shaky defense of Man City (Mangala and Demichelis are far from Kompany's level) and the attacking strength of both sides, a low scoring game (less than 3 goals) will be extremely surprising for me here.Pick: Both teams to score & Over 2.5 Goals
Odd: 1.83 @ bet365
Stake: (7/10)Good luck to everyone!
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12 April 2016:
Manchester City - PSG
Real Madrid - VfL Wolfsburg
13 April 2016:
Benfica - Bayern Munich
Atletico Madrid - Barcelona
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2 hours ago, AdrianFish said:
Can we see Liverpool grabbing an away goal this evening? Personally, I'm going for Origi. Firmino is my usual pick for Liverpool this season, but his fitness is questionable going into this game (he's travelled with the team, but I'm not sure if he'll start or not)
I believe that Klopp's presence in Liverpool is actually their biggest ace before that game. He created that defense, he knows how to break it. So yes, BTS looks like reliable bet here, especially when we consider Liverpool are mostly focused in the UEL.
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Spanish duel in the UEFA Europa League quarter-finals we have and first leg is at "San Mames" in Bilbao. This won't be the first Spanish tie for Athletic as they eliminated Valencia of Gary Neville in the last round while Sevilla comes after a win against Basel.
Both sides had poor weekend and their slips were combined with an away victory of Villarreal, so thus they're now on 9 points behind "The Yellow Submarine" in La Liga and their only hope to achieve Champions League football next season remains via Europa League, like Sevilla did last year again.
With an opportunity for third trophy in a row, Unai Emery's men are heading to The Basque Country after a surprising home defeat against another Basque club - 1:2 vs Real Sociedad. That was Sevilla's first home defeat after 17 successive wins at their "Estadio Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán”.
Athletic Bilbao had a home failure as well when they failed to win over Granada (1:1), but the good news from that game are that Iñaki Williams made his first appearance after end of February, but however, Sabin Merino pulled a hamstring injury. He's not the only missing name which Ernesto Valverde has - Raúl García is suspended, while most of you probably heard that season has ended for Aymeric Laporte.
I'm backing the same fact as in the previous round - Sevilla remains without a victory away from home this season, if we exclude their Copa del Rey matches which were against Segunda Division teams and one of them was against Real Betis. In all other matches Sevilla have 11 draws and 10 defeats, with only 1 draw in 5 European outings this season.
Athletic Bilbao surely realize how good chance they have to earn a good lead from their home game and they know how difficult it will be in Sevilla. That's why I believe that Athletic must use the poor away form of Sevilla and they can claim to take advantage of the situation - home win for "The Lions" from Bilbao.Pick: Athletic Bilbao
Odd: 2.20 @ bet365
Units: (5/10)Possible squads:
Athletic: Herrerín, Balenziaga, San José, Etxeita, De Marcos, Rico, Beñat, Lekue, Eraso, Susaeta, Aduriz. (4-2-3-1)
Sevilla: Soria, Escudero, Kolodziejczak, Rami, Coke, N'Zonzi, Krychowiak, Krohn-Dehli, Banega, Reyes, Gameiro. (4-2-3-1)
Euro 2016 > June 10th - 16th
in Euro 2024 Tips & Predictions
Posted
I'm not impressed from by the prospects for some special goal affair here and that's why my expectations are going for "under 2.5". Will see about that but so far most of the favorites are winning the points, except England's slip.