Betdistrict.com
FC Viitorul will attempt to back up their somewhat surprising 1-0 home win over APOEL Nicosia and advance to the next stage of the Champions League qualifiers.
APOEL Nicosia looked really poor in the first leg in Romania, being unable to create anything up front and eventually losing via a late free kick. The Cypriots surprisingly decided to fire their manager after that match, which was only their third of the season (they won both their other two 1-0 against Luxembourgese champs Dudelange). Mario Been was in charge only since May, but he was still let go and Giorgos Donis was hired in his place (former APOEL manager, ex PAOK, ex AEK Athens).
Romanian champions Viitorul didn`t play great either in the first match, but they were the better team and eventually deserved their victory – even if it came via a free kick wonder goal. Viitorul winning was surprising considering the fact that the team was a rather circumstancial champion in Romania last year, and this year they are looking pretty bad – losing 3 of their 4 domestic matches, failing to score in all of the losses. Viitorul played 1 match in Romania since the first leg, 0-1 at home against Dinamo, with both teams resting many players.
Bet on APOEL vs. Viitorul and claim your 100% (100 Euro) freebet at Ohmbet now!Team news: No new injuries have been reported and the two teams are expect to field similar lineups to the one that played last week.
APOEL is a better team and clearly has superior European experience compared to a Viitorul team which played a single European tie in its entire history (0-5 aggregate vs Gent last season in the Europa League). APOEL should also look better at home, with an extra week of preparation, as they will also start their domestic season next week.
However, considering how bad APOEL played in the first leg, and taking into account the managerial change, trusting them to overturn the first leg deficit doesn`t seem like a great idea.
I reckon the best bet here would be to go against goals. The first leg was a complete borefest with very few chances for either team, and there are no reasons to expect anything different here.
APOEL and Viitorul played a combined total of 7 matches this season, and 6 of them ended up with under 2,5 goals. Also, not one of the 7 games saw more than one team scoring.
The first leg result also seems to facilitate a low scoring game here. Viitorul will obviously approach the game in a defensive manner, trying to protect the lead against a stronger opponent, but APOEL can`t be too aggressive either. The Cypriots know that if they allow a goal it could all be over, so their main objective will be to stay safe at the back, while patiently trying to find the net over the 90 minutes.
Both teams seem very offensively challenged at the start of this season, last week`s matchup proved that, and now there are also the circumstances of the first leg result presumably suggest a low scoring game. I reckon this is the bet to take here.
My tip is under 2.5 goals. Prediction: APOEL Nicosia – Viitorul 1-0 (Viitorul to qualify at penalties).
Pick: under 2,5 goals
Odds: 1.64 @ 18Bet
Stake: 8
Possible profit: 5.12
Event date: 2 August
