AFTER being a Werder Bremen goal away from 4/4 winning European tips on Tuesday, Mark O’Haire (@MarkOHaire) returns with his best continental bets for Wednesday evening…
Borussia Dortmund v Stuttgart | 19.00 | BT Sport 2
Dortmund fell to their second defeat in four Bundesliga games on Saturday as they went down 2-0 at Mainz but Jurgen Klopp’s men had more than enough chances to get something out of the game. The visit from rock bottom Stuttgart should get BVB back on track.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan is the latest injury victim for the hosts but Dortmund should have more than enough at their Westfalenstadion base to cover the -1.5 Asian Handicap (Dortmund need to win by at least two goals ) at 21/20 with Bet 365 tonight. The hosts have won eight of their last nine competitive home fixtures with three of their four games in front of their own fans being won by 2+ goals this season alone.
Armin Veh led the visitors to the title back in 2007 but is struggling to turn the Swabians form around in his second spell. VFB have lost eight of their last 12 away league games (winning zero) and their tally of one point from a possible 12 has equalled their worst ever Bundesliga start. Their last three matches have all ended in a 2-0 defeat making it five fixtures without a goal in their past seven.
Hannover v Kolm | 19.00
Hannover’s unbeaten start was ended by Paderborn at the weekend with but the headlines were hogged by Moritz Stoppelkamp’s 83-metre wonder goal. Tonight they take on another newly-promoted club and goals could be at a premium.
Tayfun Korkut’s hosts have an excellent record as hosts at the HDI-Arena but have looked to be lacking a touch of creativity going forward in 2014-15 despite scoring twice against both Hamburg and Schalke at home. Three of their four Bundesliga matches have featured Under 2.5 Goals with just one seeing Both Teams Score.
Koln have yet to be beaten following their promotion and they’re the only top-tier side yet to leak a goal. Saying that, the Billy Goats have netted just two themselves and three of their first four games have ended 0-0 – a joint Bundesliga record! Like Hannover, only one of their first four games has paid out for Both Teams To Score punters so oppose it tonight by backing ‘No’ in the Both Teams To Score market at evens with Coral.
Hertha Berlin v Wolfsburg | 19.00
Hertha snatched a last-minute point at Freiburg on Friday night but it’s now just one win from 16 Bundesliga fixtures and Jos Luhukay’s team continue to look ragged defensively, conceding at least two goals in each of their last seven competitive games.
Wolfsburg answered their critics with a 4-1 win over Leverkusen on Sunday but it’s goals that should see us profit from this fixture in the German capital. The Wolves have scored in each of their last 30 Bundesliga games (a club record) but also conceded in each of their last 18 league outings (also a club record).
Throw in the fact that 11 of their last 12 have broken the Over 2.5 Goal barrier and three of their six games in 2014/15 have seen at least four goals and we could be onto something. Thankfully, Hertha’s statistics are also strong when it comes to goals – all five of their matches this season have seen Over 3.5 Goals whilst seven of the last eight meetings have also produced at least three goals. Over 2.5 Goals is available to back at 5/6 with Skybet.
Almeria v Atletico Madrid | 19.00 | Sky Sports 5
Diego Simeone remains in the stands for Altetico and his side have failed to hit the heights of their title-winning campaign, despite an eye-catching win at city rivals Real a fortnight ago. And tonight they face a trip to their bogey-team Almeria.
Atleti are winless in their last five trips to the Juegos Mediterraneos and have failed to net in three of those fixtures.The hosts beat Simeone’s side in the same fixture last season with Almeria one of only four teams to defeat the eventual champions and they’ve also scored in the last six clashes with the capital club.
Backing Both Teams To Score has proven profitable in three of Almeria’s four games this season as well as in eight of their last nine as hosts whilst Atletico’s last four in La Liga and the Champions League have followed a similar pattern. Back Both Teams To Score at 11/10 with Bet365.
Malaga v Barcelona | 21.00 | Sky Sports 5
Talking of bogey teams, Malaga may not be too excited to Barcelona stroll into town tonight. The Catalan giants are unbeaten in the last 17 meetings between the two teams, winning 16! Barca have won the last 12 La Liga showdowns, averaging 3.3 goals-per-game in the process.
Luis Enrique’s side top the table with a 100% record and are yet to concede a goal – only the third time in their history they’ve started the season with four consecutive clean sheets and are 29/20 (Coral) to record a fifth consecutive ‘win to nil’.
Malaga have managed just a solitary goal from their two games at La Rosaleda so far and Barcelona have faced just four shots-on-target in league football in 2014/15. There are alternatives; eight of Barca’s last 10 victories against Malaga have seen them ahead at half-time whilst the Catalans have won by at least two goals in eight of their last 10 wins against the Anchovies.
TOPICS European FootballBest Bets
Borussia Dortmund v Stuttgart – Dortmund -1.5 Asian Handicap (21/20 Bet365)
Hannover v Köln – Both Teams To Score ‘No’ (1/1 Coral)
Hertha Berlin v Wolfsburg – Over 2.5 Goals (5/6 Skybet)
Almeria v Atletico Madrid – Both Teams To Score (11/10 Bet365)
Malaga v Barcelona – Barcelona ‘Win To Nil’ (29/20 Coral)
