Here we go again folks!!!! Another set of Europa League previews is here for you and we hope that we will bring you more luck this time. Plenty of action across the Europe is set for Thursday night and with so many games offered we will try to cover as many games as possible.
The following preview will be covering 4 matches, Pelister (Mac) vs. Lech Poznan (Pol), Shamrock Rovers (Irl) vs. Stjarnan (Ice), Folgore (San) vs. Valletta (Mlt), and Rabotnicki (Mac) vs. Tre Penne (San), as all of these teams will be vying on June 29th for a place in the 2nd round qualifiers for the UEFA Europa League 2017-18.
PELISTER (Mac) vs. LECH POZNAN (Pol)
Three-Way: PELISTER +1050; X: +403 Draw; LECH POZNAN -256
Spread +1.5: PELISTER -118; LECH POZNAN +114
Total +2.5: Over +100; Under -112
PELISTER
The team from Macedonia finished 4th in their domestic league, 31 points behind the champion VARDAR and 18 points behind the 2nd place SHKENDIJA. PELISTER has a bit of balance on attack and defense but receives a lot of goals in most of the games and has difficulties getting a blank sheet as well as getting on the scoreboard themselves.
This will be the second game of the Europa League qualifying round against LECH, as they lost the first game playing away, by a score of 4:0 and have a losing streak of 3 games scoring only 3 goals and 10 goals against. The away game was very active by both teams, with many scoring opportunities created on both sides of the pitch. However, the home team controlled the game scoring in the 1st half 3 goals, pulling away early before the half break. Lech scored another goal on the 58th minute of the game, diminishing any chances of Pelister scoring an away goal to make things easier for the return fixture.
LECH POZNAN
The Polish based team is coming off an impressive season in their country when it comes to the domestic league. They finished off the season very strong ranking 3rd on the standings and only 2 points behind the champion LEGIA. They were 3rd in scoring and the best defense in the league, which lets us know the balance they have as a team.
With 4 goals scored in the first leg of the Europa League qualifying round, Lech Poznan will have a comfortable advantage to manage the game at their will, with their strong defense and solid attack. We can expect LECH to score and control the game as they have experience playing Europa League before.
PELISTER vs. LECH POZNAN – Match Prediction:
This Europa League first round qualifier match will be between two uneven teams, and we will watch a high action game, with a lot of goals scored, with a PELISTER team that struggles to keep a blank sheet and LECH with a high-octane offense that does not struggle to get on the scoring board. The Polish team has more experience and has had very little time off, as their league finished on June 6th.
MY PICK: Over 2.5 goals (+100)
SHAMROCK ROVERS (Irl) vs. STJARNAN (Ice)
Three-way: SHAMROCK ROVERS -118; X: +28 Draw; STJARNAN +375
Spread -0.5: SHAMROCK ROVERS -115; STJARNAN +108
Total +2.5: Over +100; Under -108
SHAMROCK ROVERS
The team from Ireland is currently in 4th place in domestic league, which is currently still in play, and are 1 point behind the 3rd ranked Bray. The Shamrock Rovers played a game on Sunday against the Sligo Rovers away and suffered a 1:0 defeat which is not a great confident booster going into the Thursdays contest.
Their current form has been great winning 3 games, one loss and only one tie. SHAMROCK ROVERS has a very good defense and has been shutting down teams with 3 clean sheets in the last 6 games, but struggles a bit getting on the scoring board.
STJARNAN
The team from Iceland is also in league play, ranking 3rd, 6 points behind the leader, and showing some offense as they are 1st place in scoring with 18 goals in 9 games.
Offense was not there in the first game of the Europa League round played at home, as they lost 0:1 against SHAMROCK ROVERS in a game where they could not just get the offense going having only 5 shots in the game, 2 on goal. Their recent form has not been good at all, losing 4 games, with 1 tie, with 4 of those games been lost by 1 goal difference.
SHAMROCK ROVERS vs. STJARNAN – Match Prediction:
Two teams, who are in similar positions in their respective leagues, will be fighting for the next round of the Europa League competition. This game should be similar to the first game, locked up in midfield with a few opportunities, leaning towards the home team to win, but I feel comfortable with a low scoring game.
MY PICK: Under 2.5 goals (-108)
Additional Pick: Shamrock Rovers (-118)
FOLGORE (San) vs. VALLETA (Mlt)
Three-Way: 1: FOLGORE +525; X: +333 Draw; VALLETA -164
Spread +1: FOLGORE -111; VALLETA +104
Total +2.5: Over +100; Under -111
FOLGORE
We can say that FOLGORE finished the season as the best team in the domestic league, as they have the best offense and defense in the country, but finished 3rd in league play 1 point behind the leader. As the San Marino league has playoffs, FOLGORE, was eliminated in semifinals playing their last game on May 12th, before starting the Europa League round play.
Recent form for them is 2 wins and 3 losses. Folgore will try to bounce back in the 2nd game, after losing the first matchup with 2:0, with goals scored at the end of the first half in the 42nd min, as well as the beginning of the second half in the 48th min. What is incredible is that they had “0” shot attempts in the game and were completely dominated by the home team.
VALLETA
The team from Malta finished at the 4th position in the domestic league. Over their last 5 matches they have had 3 losses, 1 win and 1 tie.
VALLETA managed to win the first game with no problems as they shut down the Folgore offense to “0” shots. The game was completely dominated by the home team and will go into the away game with a comfortable advantage.
FOLGORE vs. VALLETA – Match Prediction:
Folgore will have to come all out in order to win the game, with the Valleta team that has a comfortable advantage. I think Valleta will lock the game down, but will score 1 goal, keeping the game under the line.
The fact that Folgore failed to fire at least a single shot towards the goal of Vallera, could indicate that the upcoming rematch with not be a high scoring one, so I am trusting the stats and picking the under in this one, with the possibility of the away team taking the game on comfortable note.
MY PICK: Under 2.5 goals (-111)
Additional Pick: Valleta AH +1 (+104)
RABOTNICKI (Mac) vs TRE PENNE (San)
Three-Way: 1: RABOTNICKI -714; X: +910 Draw; 2: TRE PENNE +2500
Spread -2.5: RABOTNICKI +124; TRE PENNE -130
TOTAL +3.5: Over +138; Under -154
RABOTNICKI
The team form Macedonia was the 3rd best team in the domestic league play last season. They had a balanced team on offense and defense in domestic play and had issues winning games at home as they lost 4 games and tied 5.
They have a good advantage for this game, as they won the away game with 0:1, scoring an important away goal in the last minute of the regular time. Now they will go home to try and advance to the next round of the Europa League and keep up the good form, as they had lost 2 consecutive games and tied 2, at the end of league play and now they are back on track.
TRE PENNE
The team from San Marino will be looking forward to advancing into the next round of the Europa League after losing the championship game in domestic league in overtime as well as losing the 1st game of the Europa League qualifying round at home, in the last minute of gameplay.
They have lost their last 2 games by one goal and have struggle on offense as they had only 2 shots on goal at home in the 1st game. They were dominated by the away team in a game that had 39 fouls, slowing down the game, with just a few scoring opportunities.
RABOTNICKI vs. TRE PENNE – Match Prediction:
Even though the home team hasn’t been effective in their last games, they are a superior team and should advance in a low scoring game.
MY PICK: Under 3.5 goals (-154)
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