No slowing down for the teams competing in the UEFA Europa League as we get ready for the return fixtures scheduled for Thursday.
Domzale will be the more confident team going into the return fixture versus Valur Reykjavikwinning the 1st leg 2:1 last week. On the other side, the Turkish giant Galatasaray Istanbul will hope for a quick bounce back after the shocking 0:2 loss to Ostersunds in Sweden.
Luzern is in a similar situation as Galatasaray, after suffering a 0:2 away loss to Osijek, while the Dutch side Utrecht managed to pull away with a 0:0 away draw against Valletta and will enter the Thursday game with more confidence.
NK Domzale (Slo) vs. Valur Reykjavik (Ice)
3-Way: 1: Domzale -154; X: +325 Draw; 2: Valur +520
Spread -1: Domzale +123; Valur -116
Total +2.5: Over +102; Under -108
VALUR
With Valur in great league form, currently perched at the top of the Urvalsdeild (The Icelandic first division), they’ll be delighted with their season so far. Despite this, in all competitions including the Urvalsdeild, they have only managed to find 1 win from the last 5 games.They have, however, scored in 13 of their last 15 outings. In contrast, they haven’t scored more than 1 in each of their last 6 outings; they´ll need at least 2 on Thursday to have any chance of making the next round of the Europa League.
History has also pitted itself against them, with their last Europa League campaign taking place all the way back in the 2006/07 season, when they lost 3-1 on aggregate to Brondby IF (Den). Furthermore, the Icelandic side´s best finish in the Europa League, before this campaign, has been the first qualifying round, so reaching the second qualifying round has already been somewhat of an achievement for them.
One beacon of hope for Valur could be their midfielder Sigurdor Lárusson, who has managed 7 goals in 14 games this season (all competitions), including the penalty scored in the first leg against Domzale. They’ll need a fair bit of luck on their side too if they wish to progress further in the Europa League competition.
NK DOMZALE
On the contrary, NK Domzale´s recent form coming into the new season has been decent with 4 wins and 2 losses, one of those losses being a 3-2 defeat to tough opposition in Dinamo Bucharest.That being said, NK Domzale will be disappointed to lose their 1st domestic league game 2-1 away to Rudar. Despite this blip, Domzale are in good goal-scoring form, with 2 goals in each of their 5 games prior to their league defeat. In addition, they had a successful 2016/27 campaign, finishing 4th and winning a cup.
After winning their domestic cup (Slovenian Football Cup), they will be keen to continue their successes by reaching the third qualifying round of the Europa League for the second time in their history. The last time they reached the third qualifying round was just last year against West Ham United, and they put on a thrilling show for their home fans as the Hammers were well-beaten 2-1 in Slovenia. Unfortunately for Domzale, they were unable to repeat their performance levels for the away 2nd leg as they were beaten 3-0 on the night, and 4-2 on aggregate; so they’ll be eager to have another crack.
The one to watch for Domzale is young starlet Jan Repas who has become a regular starter for The Brigands. At the young age of 20 Repas amounted more appearances than any of his teammates last season, while also making 5 appearances for the Slovenian U19 team.
NK Domzale (Slo)vs.Vadur Reykjavik(Ice) – MATCH PREDICTION
Domzale´s win in the first leg, 2 away goals and overall superiority over Vadur is enough to suggest an easy win for the home side. Moreover, the Slovenian side’s good recent form, in comparison to their opponent´s form, should give them confidence going into kick-off.
As long as the confidence doesn’t become complacency, I would predict a relatively comfortable aggregate win for NK Domzale, perhaps with a repeat score line of 2:1, and definitely both teams scoring.
MY PICK: Domzale AH -1 (+123)
Additional Pick: Both teams to score YES (+104)
GALATASARAY (Tur) vs. OSTERSUNDS (Swe)
Three-Way: 1: Galatasaray -278; X: +484 Draw; 2: Ostersunds +1050
Spread -1.5: Galatasaray -104; Ostersunds -101
Total 3: Over +106; Under -112
GALATASARAY F.C
Having finished 4th in the Turkish Super Liga, Galatasaray welcome Graham Potter’s men into the Turk Telecom arena on Thursday in what will be the new signing Bafetimbi Gomis first competitive match in front of the home support since his transfer from Olympique Marseille.
Bugged by unconfirmed reports that Dutch star midfielder Wesley Sneijder had his contract terminated by the Turkish giant, and the departure of last season’s club top scorer Lukas Podolski to the Japanese J-League, Igor Tudor will have to muster all his powers of persuasion to rally his troops to try and overcome the first leg deficit.
This season marquee signing Bafetimbi Gomis will also be looking to redeem himself after what was a debut to forget, eventually coming off after the first goal in the 68th minute for Eren Derdiyok.
Last season, Galatasaray conceded on 17 goals at home compared to 23 they conceded on the road, en route to finishing a disappointing 4th in the league behind eventual winners Besiktas.
Although the last season’s results will have little effect on predicting what would happen in the Turk Telcom Arena, one thing is clear; the home crowd in excess of 52.000 roar on the Galatasaray team, and they perform considerably better at home compared to results they post on the road.
Igor Tudor and his men have a lot to prove and will be counting on home support, and their excellent home record this year to try and see off a determined Ostersunds side.
OSTERSUNDS
Graham Potter’s men currently occupy the 6th position in the Swedish top division, 10 points adrift of the leaders Malmo. Prior their visit to the Turk Telecom Arena, Ostersunds faced Djurgarden at home on Sunday and recorded a 2:1 win.
In the competition by virtue of winning the Svenska Cupen (Swedish Cup), this is the first time they are participating in Europe. English manager will want to endear himself more to the board by at least getting through to the third round at the first time of asking.
They are unbeaten in the league since the 2:1 defeat away to Malmo in April, and had registered draws against AIK(2:2) and Jonkopings (1-1) in their last two domestic league games.
Statistics however indicate they concede an average of 1.71 goals at home, compared to the .93 they concede at home.
It will be the first time they’re playing away in front of such a big crowd and in such a high stakes match.
GALATASARAY (Tur) vs. OSTERSUNDS (Swe) – MATCH PREDICTION:
This will be a high stake match that Galatasaray will simply have to work overtime to try and get past the Swedish Cup winners into the third round of the Europa League.
After a disappointing night out in the first leg, everyone on the home team will surely be fired up for this challenge.
However, they have to shed off the lack of match fitness that was evident in the first leg if they want to stand a chance against a well drilled, cohesive team that is already playing in best form in the home league.
The Turkish team is by far the bigger favorite to win this game and I believe that they can win this one with 2+ goals difference, which is why I am going with the Asian Handicap!
MY PICK: Galatasaray -1.5 AH (-104)
UTRECHT (Ned) vs. VALLETTA (Mlt)
Three-Way: 1: Utrecht -625; X: +950 Draw; 2: Valletta +2450
Spread -2.5: Utrecht +127; Valletta -135
Total +3.5: Over +133; Under -141
UTRECHT
Utrecht, although a huge favorite in the matchup against Valletta, failed to win last week and recorded only a scoreless draw in the first leg of the Europa League second qualifying round. The final result was fairly unexpected and it give the Maltese side hope going into the return fixture set to be played on Thursday night.
Utrecht, who finished the last season ranked 4th in the Eredivisie, has not been too efficient in the off season, recording only 1 win, along with 2 draws and 2 losses. Their preseason form is something that definitely should worry their fans prior to the start of the new season, and although they are expected to advance into the next round of the Europa League competition, I believe that the international journey will end there and that they will not make it through the next round.
The dutch side was pretty busy on the transfer market, adding 9 new players to their squad, with the most significant transfer being the attacking midfielder Sander van de Streek, who came in from the Belgium team Cambuur for a fee of 600.000 Euros. On the other side, 7 players have left the team. Centre-forward Sebastien Haller moved to German Bundesliga where he will play for Eintracht Frankfurt (7 mil. Euros transfer fee). Chris David and striker Patrick Joosten are ruled out of the match on Thursday as they are dealing with knee injuries.
VALLETTA
The team from Malta pulled an upset in the first leg of the Europa League second round qualifier when they managed to keep their net untouched and recorded a scoreless draw. Valletta has finished their national league campaign ranking 4th overall with 59 points to their name, which was enough to earn the qualifying round of the Europa League competition.
In the first round of the Europa League qualifiers, Valletta has recorded two wins against an even weaker opponent, Folgore from San Marino. At home, they have celebrated a 2:0 win while on the road they recorded a 1:0 win. In the first leg of the second round, they held their opponents to a 0:0 draw and now they are hoping for a miracle as they get ready for the return fixture on Thursday.
The 23-times Maltese Champion has added 11 new player during the offseason while 9 players have left the team. Most of the transfers have been made without a fee or on loan, so there are no significant financial contributions being made. The focal point of this team is the Argentine winger Maxi Velasco who will be the main threat for the hosts.
Prior to the start of the match, there are no reported injuries or players to miss the clash.
UTRECHT (Ned) vs. VALLETTA (Mlt) – Match Prediction:
It is safe to say that the Dutch side has underestimated their opponent in the first leg, but there is no doubt that things will look much different come Thursday. Although Valletta showed that they can play offensive football and will not hold back, the Utrecht team should prove that they are the stronger team and deserve to advance into the next round. The total has been set to 3.5, but I think that the visitors will manage to keep their net untouched for most of the game and will capitulate only once, or the most two times. This leads to a conclusion that the under is the most reasonable option to place a bet on.
MY PICK: Under 3.5 goals (-141)
LUZERN (Sui) vs. OSIJEK (Cro)
Three-Way: 1: Luzern +114; X: +254 Draw; 2: Osijek +284
Spread -0.5: Luzern +106; -118
Total +2.5: Over -104; Under -110
LUZERN
The 1-time league and 2-time Swiss cup Champion, Luzern, is under a huge pressure going into the Thursdays night matchup with Osijek. The team is in a 2 goal deficit and fans at the Swissporarena will expect nothing but a win once their team steps onto the pitch.
Luzern has not shinned in the previous season of the domestic league, finishing it at the 5th place and having won only 50 points. Their poor form from the last season has continued in the club friendlies where they recorded 3 draws and 1 loss in 4 games.
On the transfer market they have brought in 16 new players, out of which some came after their loan has expired. Head Coach Markus Babbel will hope for the best of his team as he is aware that there are no more chances, if they want to advance into the next round of the Europa League.
OSIJEK
Osijek was one of the four teams coming from the Croatian top league to reach the European competition. After finishing the regular season ranking 4th in the table with 66 points, it was clear that Osijek would see some international competition playing in the first qualifying round of the Europa League.
Their first opponent was the UE Santa Coloma from Andorra, a team that was more of a warm-up match to the Croatian team. Namely, after recording an 2:0 away win in the first leg, Osijek displayed full strength at home, thrashing the visitors with 4:0, thus advancing into the second round of the Europa League.
The team management was pretty busy during the off-season, adding a total of 12 new player to the roster. The most significant additions were Eros Grezda and Petar Bockas, both coming from NK Lokomotiva for a combined total fee of 1 mil. Euros. Both players have already proved their worth after they both scored in the qualifying games of the Europa League. On the other side, 9 players have left the team, mostly on a loan.
LUZERN (Sui) vs. OSIJEK (Cro) – Match Prediction:
NK Osijek has completely dominated the Swiss team in the first leg of the second Europa League round, recording a 2:0 win, with Muzafer Ejupi and Eros Grozda both scoring a goal. However, the return leg should provide a much better performance of the Swiss team, so I expect them to score at least once. In fact, I am going to pick both teams to score once.
MY PICK: Both teams to score YES (-125)
