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Arch rivals Steaua Bucharest and Dinamo Bucharest will meet at National Arena in the 2nd leg of the Romanian League Cup semifinals, after Dinamo ruined Steaua 4-1 in the 1st leg, at the same venue.
Despite sitting on the 2nd place in Romania, 5 points behind league leaders Viitorul and 8 points in front of Dinamo, Steaua is playing poor football and has done so all year. Steaua has won only 2 games from their last 9 in all competitions and only one out of four in 2017. The atmosphere at the club is toxic, from the owner to the coaching staff and the players. Last time out, Steaua barely held out to a 1-1 draw at Gaz Metan (5th place) over the weekend, in a match they should have lost.
Dinamo had a lot of ups and downs this season, alternating great performances with very poor ones and that brought them in a situation where they could have missed the playoffs (still not 100% qualified). Coach Andone was sacked two rounds ago and the new manager Contra (ex-Getafe) rallied the squad for two important wins against difficult opponents in the last two rounds: 1-0 against Botosani and 2-1 against Craiova. The level of play wasn`t great, but it was OK and the team showed top determination and character.
Bet on Steaua vs. Dinamo and claim your 100% (100 Eur) freebet at Ohmbet now!Team news & lineups:
A couple of absences for both sides, but nothing major. Expect both teams to field their best lineups, despite the first leg result.
Steaua: Nita – Balasa, Tamas, Moke, Momcilovic – Popescu, Pintilii – Enache, Alibec, De Amorim – Gnohere
Dinamo: Penedo – Romera, Nedelcearu, Maric, Filip – Busuladzic, Nistor – Hanca, Palic, Mahlangu – Nemec
I doubt Steaua should be favored at all in this game, let alone at a price of 1.70 for them to win.
Steaua might be higher in the standings than Dinamo in the league, and they do have a better squad player for player, but they are horribly coached, guys are playing out of position and Steaua has played poor football all year. The fact that they are on the second place in Romania is baffling and many people are claiming that only favorable refereeing got them so high.
Dinamo has not lost to Steaua in the last 9 matches (all competitions). This season the two teams met three times. It was a 1-1 draw in the first match, followed by two big, dominant Dinamo wins late in 2016: 3-1 and 4-1.
All in all, Steaua is not a better team than Dinamo, as it has been clearly proven this season. And they aren`t exactly playing at home.
They do play more often than Dinamo at National Arena, but Dinamo played their last two matched there and won`t have any problems to adjust. Additionally, Dinamo will have much more support in the stands, as their fans are more loyal and more vocal, so this will be a neutral ground at best – but a valid argument can be made that Dinamo will feel more at home.
The only thing that works in Steaua’s favor is the first leg result and the fact that Dinamo has a very important match coming up on Sunday, which they will need to win to qualify for the Liga 1 playoffs. However, Dinamo is treating any match against Steaua with full focus and will definitely be fully motivated against their arch rivals. There`s plenty of time left until Sunday and they will have an easy time meeting a team on the brink of extinction in that game.
I can see this being a draw, with Steaua trying to score but being unable to create chances, while Dinamo will be happy to sit back, counter and wait it out for an easy qualification. My tip is Dinamo to cover the 1 goal asian handicap. Prediction: Steaua Bucharest – Dinamo Bucharest 0-0.
Pick: Dinamo Buc (+1 Asian Handicap)
Odds: 1.63 @ 1xBet
Stake: 8
Possible profit: 5.04
Event date: 1 March
