Tag Archives: HJK Helsinki

KuPS Kuopio vs HJK Helsinki

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Quick notice – there’ll be some changes on TFT over the summer. I’m going to get rid of some leagues and add some different leagues for varying reasons. The leagues that are going are either due to incessant match fixing or a lack of value. This is not a finalised list – there may be more to come – but the ones that are going are Italy’s Serie B, England’s League One and Two, France’s Ligue 2, Netherlands’ Eerste Divisie, and possibly Germany’s Bundesliga 2 with a sprinkling of South American leagues too, depending on how much time I have. The ones that are definitely coming in are the Czech Druha League, the Moldovan Divizia Nationala, and the Macedonian First League. All comments are welcome regarding the above information although bear in mind that my mind is unlikely to change as I’m a stubborn person!

Additionally, don’t forget to check out the TFT jobs section on the right that we’ve added – maybe some of you will be interested there.

Today’s secondary featured game is the Veikkausliiga clash in central Finland between KuPS Kuopio and HJK Helsinki. KuPS aren’t as bad as their league placing suggests but they’re facing the best side in Finland today and I think they may be outdone.

KuPS interestingly claimed a 4-4 draw in Turku last match against Inter, which demonstrates their true potential. Will they attain it again today? Impossible to say as they’ve been hit-and-miss all season long. Realistically speaking, they’re a top five team for me, even without the departed Dudu. Nwakaeme is starting to fill his boots and with Udah and Williams providing the necessary support, KuPS have the foundation for a very solid attack. Ilo and Venelainen generally provide a lot of attacking presence too but neither have been particularly prominent so far this season, which is largely why KuPS have failed to deliver so far this season, in my view. Defensively, KuPS are still vulnerable and the fact that all four goals conceded against Inter Turku last match came from corners/crosses should concern them massively ahead of this game because HJK play a very expansive game. It has to be said that for all KuPS’ huffing and puffing against Inter Turku, all their goals came from Inter Turku playing a high line but not defending well enough with KuPS capitalising upon their defensive laxity with some of their chances being taken in a very clinical fashion, most notably Nwakaeme’s curling finish. KuPS do have a good side, it has to be said, but they’re vulnerable at the back and tempremental in attack so I’m going against them today.

However, I won’t go against them recklessly as that’s positively suicidal. HJK are the best side in Finland but KuPS can cause them problems on their day. Nonetheless, HJK are an absolute machine right now with twelve wins from their last thirteen games, beating the -1 asian handicap in nine of those twelve wins. They’ve been absolutely dominant in all of those games too, barring the defeat at IFK Mariehamn. It’s no surprise that they’re dominanting Finland, really – they’ve got two squads of players capable of winning this championship. Nobody else can even begin to emulate their strength in-depth and it really shows. The addition of Sadik in attack pre-season gives them much needed muscle and aerial prowess whereas Pukki is starting to fulfill his potential by taking his chances. HJK have been lethal down the flanks with Sorsa lighing up the Veikkausliiga, not to mention Mannstrom and even Bah when he drifts out there. Rafinha, Zeneli, Ring – all good midfielders, all playing their part in this team and that’s even without mentioning veteran attacker Litmanen! HJK are just a nightmare to defend against because they’re so quick and skillful on the flanks and that’s going to cause KuPS a lot of problems today. I’d definitely take Sadik to score anytime if you can find odds on it because KuPS cannot defend from wide positions!

Either way, I really fancy HJK to do well here. I’m going with the asian handicap rather than the european handicap because KuPS are a good side. However, the -1 asian handicap being priced at 9/10 interests me a lot today as the visitors have enough firepower and attacking threat to win this game by a couple of goals whilst the insurance side of it allows for KuPS showing up and causing problems themselves.

Verdict: HJK Helsinki to win with a -1 asian handicap at 9/10.

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Monday’s Picks

My tips:

As ever, below are my recommended value tips for today in no particular order:

Fredrikstad vs Tromso – under 2.5 goals at 4/5.

From what I’ve seen so far this season, there’s no doubt that Fredrikstad will avoid the drop. They’ve got great individual talent in Elyounoussi and Borges that can win them games and they’ve got a good squad cohesion which means that they rarely concede goals, especially with Estonian rock Piiroja at the heart of defence. Only Valerenga Oslo and today’s opponents Tromso have conceded less than newly-promoted Fredrikstad this season in the Eliteserien so you can see how hard they are to break through. Fredrikstad don’t score many because without their star twosome in attack, they really struggle to create and convert chances. However, they can produce and magic and win games and that’s enough for Fredrikstad. Either way, they’re a very impressive unit and they’re not easy to play against with their vociferous support behind them.

Tromso have sold defender Hogli to Club Brugge in Belgium and their watertight defence may finally start being exposed without him. It doesn’t help that they’ve sold him when their eyes are fixed on their UEFA Europa League commitments but that’s their decision, I suppose. They won 0-5 in Latvia last week against Daugava Daugavpils so they’re already through to the next round, realistically speaking. I doubt they’ll rest players for the return leg – it should really be the other way around. I fully expect Tromso to turn up with their first-team tonight to do what they always do away from home in the Eliteserien – defend solidly and take their chances. However, with leader Rushfeldt absent, Tromso’s attack is generally non-existant and that should be particularly evident against a rock-solid Fredrikstad defence. I don’t see the visitors scoring today, to be blunt!

I suppose the big question is whether the hosts can unlock the Tromso defence or not. With Hogli having moved on and Finnish veteran Koppinen a doubt, the possibility is there for Borges or Elyounoussi to make something happen. I’m not happy to take them to do so, however – they weren’t convincing against Haugesund last round so I’ll give the 1×2 market a miss here, even though the game is played on natural turf whereas Tromso use artificial turf at the Alfheim. I still think there’s enough strength with Regniussen holding things together at the back for Tromso for them to get a draw off the goal-shy hosts here so instead my attention goes toward under 2.5 goals because it’s a generous price at 4/5 when you consider that both sides are pretty unadventurous tactically.

Team news – Fredrikstad have doubts over Valencia whereas Tromso miss Rinde and Rushfeldt whilst having doubts over Koppinen.

Verdict: Under 2.5 goals at 4/5.

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Djurgarden vs Helsingborg - over 2.5 goals at evens.

This is my second over 2.5 goals call in Sweden this weekend – I must be mad!

However, I like this one a lot, I have to say. Djurgarden boss Magnus Pehrson has really inspired his side since he took over, steering them to four consecutive wins whilst they’ve bagged ten goals and shipped just one. They’re still a bit average at the back at times and their strikers are a bit average too but their midfield is quite excellent. Pehrson has Finnish international Perovuo back in his squad for today’s game, should he choose to utilise him, but it’s Sjolund and Hamalainen that do the damage for Djurgarden as both of them have plenty of pace and skill. It helps Djurgarden’s attack that Youssef has settled down quite well with big Igboananike because although they’re quite an average pairing, Djurgarden still need a presentable attack to compliment their fine midfield or it all goes to waste, which was particularly evident at the start of the season. However, Djurgarden look good under their new boss and I fancy them to cause Helsingborg problems tonight after such a good run of form and with only Ayuba absent.

Helsingborg just haven’t looked themselves lately. It’s not like them to concede five goals in their last two Allsvenskan games and fail to beat the likes of IFK Norrkoping away or GAIS Goteborg at home. They’re looking a bit uncertain at the back from time to time and I expect in-form Djurgarden to capitalise on that. However, I also expect lightning-quick Gerndt and fellow attackers Sundin and Jonsson to cause problems for Djurgarden’s susceptible defence today as they’re more than talented enough to do so. Unfortunately, Helsingborg miss Bouaouzan for this game and that could affect their performance overall, which is the last thing they need given how unpredictably they’ve played of late. Nonetheless, Helsingborg always have a goal or two in them, particularly in recent times, and they’re likely to concede here given the form of their hosts so over 2.5 goals looks logical here.

Historically, these two sides play a good game here in Stockholm with five out of the last six meetings here having gone over 2.5 goals. I’d not dare enter the 1×2 market because although Helsingborg are the better side, Djurgarden are riding the crest of a wave right now so that’s a big “avoid” for me. However, over 2.5 goals at evens floats my boat here – there should be plenty of goals here although I’d avoid it if the odds drop – I rarely find value in over 2.5 goals in Sweden’s Allsvenskan below evens!

Team news – Djurgarden miss Ayuba whereas Helsingborg miss Bouaouzan and Patronen.

Verdict: Over 2.5 goals at evens.

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As ever, if there are any explanations required then please feel free to post a comment! For the remainder of my thoughts on today’s games, see below, although I feel compelled to write that the below are not necessarily my tips but merely my thoughts to prevent endless questions about my thoughts on certain games!

Copa America:

Uruguay vs Peru (7) 2-0
Chile vs Mexico (6) 1-0

Belarusian Vysshaya Liga:

FC Minsk vs Shakhtyor Soligorsk (5) 1-2

Finnish Veikkausliiga:

Haka Valkeakoski vs Jaro Pietarsaari (5) 1-1
MyPa Anjalankoski vs JJK Jyvaskyla (7) 1-2
KuPS Kuopio vs HJK Helsinki (7) over 2.5 goals

Finnish Ykkonen:

KooTeePee Kotka vs FC Lahti (5)

Norwegian Eliteserien:

Fredrikstad vs Tromso (5) 1-0

Singaporean S-League:

Gombak United vs Albirex Niigata (6) 1-0

Swedish Allsvenskan:

Djurgarden vs Helsingborg (5) 1-2

Swedish Superettan:

Brage vs Jonkopings Sodra (5)

Enjoy your free betting tips!

HJK Helsinki vs Inter Turku

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Today’s secondary featured game is the Veikkausliiga encounter between giants HJK Helsinki and Inter Turku. The gap’s been steadily increasing between HJK and the chasing pack for some years now and this year it appears to be more evident than ever.

HJK last season were ran a little closer than they’d have liked by Honka and decided to add to the squad pre-season to bolster their ranks. They signed attacking midfielder Yobe, Honka captain Hakanpaa, midfield propsect Ring, and Lahti hitman Sadik. However, Yobe was dismissed following his involvement in the match fixing scandal and following Westo’s decision to not continue playing football this season, a few question marks were being raised about HJK’s creativity and overall attacking ability. After all, Ring has a good shot from distance and Sadik is a good hitman but they’re not players that are what I’d call “match-winners”. So what did HJK do? They went and signed arguably the best Finnish player of all time – Jari Litmanen. He’s forty now but he still dominates this league with some ease and for an example of that, check this goal that he scored for Lahti last season.

So yeah – HJK are as good as ever this season and I’ll be astounded if they don’t win the Veikkausliiga again this year. They’ve got so much depth in all areas of their team that it’s not even funny. They’ve got terrific wingers in the likes of Bah, Sorsa, and Zeneli and with big Sadik and pacey Parikka in attack, HJK have a strong attack at almost any given time. HJK were poor in their opening game at TPS Turku, deservedly losing 2-0. However, they bounced back with a 4-1 win against KuPS Kuopio last match and although I felt the result flattered them due to them capitalising on poor goalkeeper positioning from Pontinen and poor defending in general. However, they did capitalise on poor goalkeeping by keeping the KuPS goal under threat most of the game and they deserved their win as a result, in my eyes.

Inter Turku have to somehow find a way of dealing with their old adversaries today and I’m not entirely sure how they’ll do it. If HJK’s result against KuPS flattered HJK then Inter’s 4-0 win against Honka definitely flattered them as they took four chances without having created many more than that despite facing ten men for the vast majority of the game following a clumsy barge from Aalto in the first minute. Inter Turku then capitalised on terrible Honka defending to score goal after goal with even injury-ravaged hitman Furuholm getting his name on the scoresheet despite not looking fully fit at the moment. Indeed, Honka were in the game a lot more than was indicated by the scoreline and that should be something distinctly more visible today. I won’t lie here; Inter Turku have impressed me with their efficiency so far this season and with old hand Dragtsma in charge, it’s no surprise that they’re doing so well – the Dutch tactician is one of the best managers in Finland right now. Inter Turku do have some good players in their ranks and they keep the ball worryingly well but their biggest flaw is scoring goals and against a vibrant and superior HJK side today, I fear for them. They were destroyed by HJK in the Liiga Cup when they tried to play their possession game and if that fails then Inter generally don’t have a “Plan B” so why should that change today?

Odds of 3/4 aren’t ideal on HJK at home to one of their big rivals but there’s such a big quality difference that I can’t help but take a nibble of the home win here. I’d leave it if the odds drop but HJK should have too much for their opponents today.

Verdict: HJK Helsinki to win at 3/4.

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Thursday’s Picks

My tips:

As ever, below are my recommended value tips for today in no particular order:

MyPa Anjalankoski vs FC Honka Espoo - away win at 27/25.

As I mentioned in the above preview, I feel the result in Turku was harsh on Honka, who continued to attack well despite having only ten men on the field. However, the question does have to be asked – how have they gone two games without scoring a goal? They play relentless attacking football because they cannot defend for love nor money and yet they’ve not scored in two games. I mean, in all fairness, JJK’s goalkeeper Korhonen was arguably man of the match against Honka in Espoo and Honka did only have ten men last match but still – this side specialises in scoring goals and they’re not doing so! If they had TPS Turku or KuPS Kuopio today then I’d fear for Honka but fortunately, they’re facing a poor MyPa side and should bounce back.

MyPa aren’t just losing games; they’re not creating chances. That’s a huge problem, as I’m sure you’ll all agree. They played IFK Mariehamn at home in their opening Veikkausliiga game and created next to nothing, deservedly losing 0-2. They followed that game up with a disappointing display in Jyvaskyla, being dominated throughout the game, again creating nothing, and eventually losing just 1-0 when it could have been 3-0 or 4-0 had JJK been in-form. I mean, it’s partially understandable as MyPa only really have Innanen in attack of any substantial quality but MyPa’s big problem is that they’re only strong in midfield with old hand Okkonen alongside emerging midfielder Saxman. MyPa are simply a poor side and I can’t help but oppose a side so bereft of talent in many areas when they lack spirit, cohesion, and creativity.

I don’t expect a classic here due to the games that both sides have played thus far but the only side likely to score here is Honka because that’s what they do!

Verdict: FC Honka Espoo to win at 27/25.

TPS Turku vs Jaro Pietarsaari – home win at 4/5.

I’d leave this one if the odds drop but for now, the home win at 4/5 appeals to me.

TPS Turku are a bit hit-and-miss currently as they struggle to integrate all of their new players following their many departures pre-season. They were set for a bleak campaign with Jonatan Johansson hanging up his boots and lots of players leaving – the Riski brothers, Wusu, Cleaver, Jovanovic, Manninen etc. However, they’ve been quite clever lately with their signings, bringing in ex-Udinese right-back Hurme, ex-CSKA Moscow striker Shumilin, Dutch attacker Dadda from VVV Venlo, Finnish midfield prospect Pennanen from Twente Enschede, and strike duo Tarvajarvi and Kuqi from Neuchatel Xamax and Dundee respectively. There’s a lot of good players there and they should benefit TPS Turku long-term although which TPS turns up today remains to be seen. They dominated HJK at home in their opening Veikkausliiga game but were poor in Vaasa at weekend, losing 2-1 at VPS in a game that barely merited one goal, let alone three. Nonetheless, looking at the quality in TPS’ team, you have to fancy them to win this one.

It aids my cause that Jaro have started the season terribly. As I mentioned in the weekend preview, Jaro look lost in central midfield now that Eremenko, Novikov, and Matrone have all left. For me, Jaro still have good strikers in Niang and especially ex-Metalurg Donetsk striker Zeze. However, what use are they with no service? That question has been answered with one goal scored in two Veikkausliiga games despite Jaro having faced arguably the worst two sides in the division. Inexplicably, Jaro have lost at home to Haka Valkeakoski and at RoPS Rovaniemi, the latter of which is more acceptable but is still somewhat surprising giving how well Eremenko Snr’s team played last season. Agyeman is a good player but should he be carrying the team in his first season? No, of course not. Jaro aren’t creating enough chances at the moment and that’s a dangerous game to play against sides like TPS Turku, who are simply better than they are. Jaro do have good strikers, as I’ve mentioned, so when they do almost inevitably re-sign the son of their manager on loan when the Scottish Premier League ends, they should become a force again. For the present time, however, they look utterly bereft of ideas.

Therefore, I have to favour a gelling but talented TPS side against a Jaro side bereft of ideas. The odds are decent at 4/5 but as I said earlier – leave them if they drop as a TPS side without 100% cohesion isn’t worth less than 4/5 to me.

Verdict: TPS Turku to win at 4/5.

Accumulator fodder:

Velez Sarsfield.

Recommended bets:

Velez Sarsfield and HJK Helsinki at over evens.

As ever, if there are any explanations required then please feel free to post a comment! For the remainder of my thoughts on today’s games, see below, although I feel compelled to write that the below are not necessarily my tips but merely my thoughts to prevent endless questions about my thoughts on certain games!

Copa Libertadores:

Velez Sarsfield vs Libertad Asuncion (8) 2-0
Jaguares vs Cerro Porteno (6) 2-1

Colombian Primera A:

Independiente de Santa Fe Bogota vs Deportivo Cali (6) 1-0
Cucuta Deportivo vs Once Caldas Manizales (5) 2-1

English Championship:

Nottingham Forest vs Swansea City (6) 2-1

Faroese Meistaradeildin:

NSI Runavik v IF Fuglafjordur (7) 2-1

Finnish Veikkausliiga:

KuPS Kuopio vs VPS Vaasa (7) 2-0
HJK Helsinki vs Inter Turku (7) 2-1
MyPa Anjalankoski vs FC Honka Espoo (6) 1-2
RoPS Rovaniemi vs JJK Jyvaskyla (6) 0-1
TPS Turku vs Jaro Pietarsaari (7) 1-0

Greek Super League:

Olympiakos Volos vs PAOK Salonika (5) 0-0
Panathinaikos vs AEK Athens (7) 2-1, at least one red card in this game

Mexican Primera Division:

Guadalajara vs Pumas UNAM (6) 2-1
Cruz Azul vs Morelia (7) 2-0

Singaporean S-League:

Gombak United vs Home United (6) 1-1

Spanish Segunda Liga:

Villarreal II vs Alcorcon (4)
Granada vs Huesca (5)
Girona vs Deportivo Xerez (6)
Las Palmas vs Cartagena (5) over 2.5 goals
Salamanca vs Celta de Vigo (5)
Rayo Vallecano de Madrid vs Elche (7)

Swiss Challenge League:

Delemont vs Chiasso (4)

Enjoy your free betting tips!