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Rio Ave vs Braga

This encounter in Portugal sees lowly Rio Ave hosting Europa-League hopefuls Braga. Ordinarily, this game would be considered a whitewash away win, and rightfully so, but the hosts have now notched up two straight wins, albeit against opposition around them in the league. Those two wins have taken them out of the drop zone and they'll be keen to stay there. Braga, by their own high standards, may be a little disappointed by the season so far to find themselves behind Nacional Funchal albeit only by a point and they'll be keen to ensure they are playing European football again next year. Both sides will clearly be keen to win this game and on the tough pitch at Rio Ave, there should be a very fierce encounter in prospect. In my mind, I can't see anything but an away win, providing Braga turn up for this game. If they don't and allow the hosts to hustle and bustle them, this game could begin to lean towards a draw as Braga's predominant weakness is goalscoring. However, I'm going to call a 1-2 victory for the visitors in hope that they get a goal in the first half and counter-attack the hosts when they attack them in the second half. Expect plenty of yellow cards in this game, although I find it unlikely there'll be reds.

Friday's Picks

My tips:

As ever, utilise what you will, wherever you will. Below are the sides that I cannot explain not winning their respective games:

Cherno More Varna, Boulogne, Gyori ETO FC, Debrecen

The next group of sides are the sides that have a very good chance of being successful in their respective games:

Montpellier HSC, Tours, Kecskemeti TE, Szombathelyi Haladas, Bohemians, RKC Waalwijk, Go Ahead Eagles, GKS Belchatow, Wisla Krakow, Unirea Urziceni, Steaua Bucharest, Galatasaray SK, Metalist Kharkiv

This last group of three is my risky tip of the day - all have a decent chance of success and should bring you the best odds:

VFL Bochum, Fehervar, Dordrecht '90

However, if this blatant listing of good tips isn't enough for you, somehow, then I'll list bets I find likely/intriguing/good value in order of likelihood:

Cherno More Varna, GKS Belchatow, Boulogne, Gyor ETO FC, Debrecen - Should be about 6/1
Galatasaray SK, Metalist Kharkiv, Tours - Should be 6/1 or 7/1
Wisla Krakow, Steau Bucharest, Unirea Urziceni, Bohemians, Kecskemeti TE - Should be 6/1 again

For the complete picks listing, see below!

Austrian Bundesliga:

Austria Vienna vs SV Mattersburg (7) 2-1

Belgian Eerste Klasse:

Club Brugge vs Lokeren (7) 2-1

Bulgarian A PFG:

Cherno More Varna vs Belasitsa Petrich (9) 3-0

Faroese Meistaradeildin:

IF Fuglafjordur vs KI Klaksvik (6) 1-0

French Ligue 2:

Ameins SC vs Tours FC (8)
Bastia vs Vannes OC (6)
Boulogne vs AC Ajaccio (9)
Chateauroux vs Brest (6)
Dijon FCO vs Clermont Foot (5)
Stade de Reims vs Troyes (7)
En Avant Guingamp vs Strasbourg (6)
Metz vs Nimes (7)
Montpellier HSC vs Angers SCO (8)

German Bundesliga:

VFL Bochum vs Hannover 96 (6) 1-0

Hungarian Soproni Liga:

Szombathelyi Haladas vs Budapest Honved (8) 2-1
Debrecen vs Kaposvari Rakoczi (9) 3-1
Kecskemeti TE vs Rakospalotai EAC (8) 2-0
Fehervar vs Zalaegerszegi TE (6) 2-1
Nyiregyhaza Spartacus vs Paksi SE (5) 1-1
Gyori ETO FC vs Vasas Budapest (9) 3-0

Irish Premier League:

Drogheda United vs Derry City (4) 1-1
Bohemians vs Dundalk (8) 2-1
Galway United vs St Patrick's Athletic (6) 2-2
Cork City vs Sligo Rovers (7) 2-1

Italian Serie B:

Vicenza vs Rimini (7)

Dutch Eerste Divisie:

Haarlem vs FC Emmen (7)
Omniworld vs Stormvogels/Telstar (7)
Cambuur Leeuwarden vs FC Eindhoven (7)
FC Den Bosch vs Dordrecht '90 (6)
AGOVV Appeldoorn vs VVV Venlo (7)
Fortuna Sittard vs MVV Maastricht (7)
RKC Waalwijk vs RBC Roosendaal (8)
Go Ahead Eagles vs Top OSS (8)
BV Veendam vs Excelsior (6)
Helmond Sport vs FC Zwolle (6)

Polish Ekstraklasa:

GKS Belchatow vs Polonia Bytom (8) 2-0
Piast Gliwice vs Wisla Krakow (8) 1-2

Portuguese Liga Sagres:

Rio Ave vs Braga (8) 1-2

Romanian Liga:

Unirea Urziceni vs Gloria Bistrita (8) 2-0
Steaua Bucharest vs Otelul Galati (8) 2-1

Swedish Allsvenskan:

Kalmar vs Hacken Goteborg (6) 1-0
Trelleborgs vs Orgryte Goteborg (7) 2-0
Brommapojkarna vs Elfsborg Boras (5) 1-1

Turkish Super Lig:

Hacettepe SK vs Galatasaray SK (8) 1-2

Ukrainian Premier League:

Arsenal Kiev vs Metalist Kharkiv (8) 1-2

Enjoy your free betting tips!

Dynamo Kiev vs Shakhtar Donetsk

This clash between the two biggest clubs in Ukraine proves to be a very exciting encounter. Both sides are in very good form, although Shakhtar Donetsk have only shown this in the second half of the season, whereas their hosts today have been consistently outstanding all season on all fronts. For me, this it the ultimate "the away goal will count" example. I expect both sides to win their respective legs but I don't know who will triumph on away goals. In my eyes, Dynamo Kiev's tenacity and experienced players in gritty encounters will see them win against the samba footballers of Shakhtar Donetsk. The visitors are no strangers to a physical game, but their large South American contingent shows they're not the strongest of players. I expect a very fiery encounter and my call is 2-0, although that may be more wishful thinking than anything as I much prefer Dynamo Kiev on a personal level over Shakhtar Donetsk. 2-1 wouldn't be out of the question if one of Shakhtar Donetsk's Brazilian footballers turn on the magic.

Thursday's Picks

UEFA Cup:

Dynamo Kiev vs Shakhtar Donetsk (7) 2-0
Werder Bremen vs Hamburger SV (6) 1-0

Hungarian Soproni Liga:

Diosgyori VTK vs Nyiregyhaza Spartacus (7) 2-1

Latvian Virsliga:

FK Ventspils vs Liepajas Metalurgs (7) 2-0
Daugava Riga vs Skonto Riga (7) 1-2

Norwegian Tippeligaen:

Brann Bergen vs Lillestrom (7) 2-0

Russian Division 1:

KamAZ Nab Chelny vs Vityaz Podolsk (6)
Volga Nzyhnyi Novgorod vs NoSta Novotroitsk (7)
Volgar Gazprom Astrakhan vs Cherno Novorosisk (7)
Anzhi Makhachkala vs FK Krasnodor (8)
FK Chita vs Shinnik Yaroslavl' (7)
MVD Rossiya Moscow vs Baltika Kaliningrad (6)
Energiya Khabarovsk vs Salyut Belgorod (7)
Luch-Energiya Vladivostok vs Metallurg Lipetsk (6)
Ural Sverdlovskaya Oblast vs FK Nizhnyi Novgorod (6)
Sibir Novosibirsk vs Alaniya Vladikavkaz (6) under 2.5 goals

Enjoy your free betting tips!

Manchester United vs Arsenal

Tonight we witness yet another colossal encounter between English giants Manchester United and Arsenal. These games are notoriously close and goal-filled. In fact, I don't recall the last game between these two sides where either side didn't score. I predict an absolute peach of a game, however, well-worth watching if you're free to do so. Both sides play exceptional attacking football. Arsenal have an extremely impressive run of league form to boast of whereas Manchester United have stumbled a little lately, although have certainly emphasised their immense belief and team spirit by fighting back various times in recent games. Although it sounds stupidly obvious, this game just depends on line-up. For instance, if Anderson starts, then Fabregas won't see the ball. However, if the central pairing is something like Carrick and Fletcher, then Fabregas will see more of the ball and he's their main playmaker. If Theo Walcott starts on the right, then Patrice Evra has to be on his game to keep him under control. If Nani starts on either flank, Manchester United will struggle doubling-up against Arsenal's wingers. Arsenal are also missing a host of defenders, most notably William Gallas. Rumour has it that Mickael Silvestre is injured whilst Kieran Gibbs continues to fill in for the injured Gael Clichy. Arsenal are not a good side defensively at the best of times, but missing so many key defensive players away to free-scoring Manchester United is suicide at the best of times. I suspect young Gibbs may be torn apart by Cristiano Ronaldo on more than one occasion. Based on the information above, I'm going to call a 3-1 victory to the hosts with Ronaldo to score at any time.

Wednesday's Picks

My tips:

My favourite bet of the day has to include Manchester United, FC Lahti, IFK Mariehamn and Girondins de Bordeaux. You have to be looking at something like 9/1 for this bet, so it's good value.

UEFA Champions League:

Manchester United vs Arsenal (7) 3-1

Bosnia-Herzegovina Premijer Liga:

Laktasi vs Borac Banja Luka (8) 2-1
Modrica vs FK Sarajevo (5) 1-1
Posusje vs Orasje (7) 2-0
Slavija Istocno Sarajevo vs Zrinjski Mostar (6) 2-1, at least one red card in this game
Sloboda Tuzla vs Travnik (7) 2-1
Velez Mostar vs Siroki Brijeg (6) 1-0
Zeljeznicar Sarajevo vs Leotar Trebinje (9) 2-0
Zvijezda Gradacac vs Celik Zenica (7) 2-1

Finnish Veikkausliiga:

Haka Valkeakoski vs HJK Helsinki (6) 2-2
MyPa Anjalankoski vs Tampere United (6) 1-1
FC Lahti vs RoPS Rovaniemi (8) 2-0
IFK Mariehamn vs KuPS Kuopio (9) 2-0
Inter Turku vs Jaro Pietarsaari (7) 1-0

French Ligue 1:

Stade Rennais vs Girondins de Bordeaux (8) 1-2

Hungarian Soproni Liga:

MTK Budapest vs Ujpest (6) 1-1, at least one red card in this game

Latvian Virsliga:

Blazma Rezekne vs FK Jurmala (7) 1-1

Republic of Macedonia Prva Liga:

Vardar Skopje vs Sileks Kratovo (8) 2-0
Rabotnicki Skopje vs Milano Kumanovo (7) 2-1
Turnovo vs Renova Dzepciste (6) 1-1
Pelister Bitola vs Metalurg Skopje (6) 1-0
Napredok Kicevo vs Pobeda Prilep (6) 2-1

Swedish Allsvenskan:

GAIS Goteborg vs Hammarby (6) 2-1
Malmo vs Gefle (8) 2-0
Halmstads vs Djurgardens (7) 2-1
AIK Solna vs Helsingborgs (6) 1-1, at least one red card in this game

Enjoy your free betting tips!