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Even though Grödig holds the second position ahead of this match, the match between these two teams is a battle between David and Goliath. Grödig can hardly threaten Salzburg's winning ambitions if the guests go out in full force and show their trademark combination and efficiency, but on the other hand, I also don't expect Grödig to close down and park the bus against the leading team. We are aware that the home team would have a hard time playing 90 minutes without conceding a goal or two, which is why they might try to take advantage of lack of the away team's lack of concentration in defense.
Should that happen, this game should have goals galore, and the four lucky teams that got a point against Salzburg did so by scoring a goal (Sturm, Rapid, Wacker) or two (Wolfsberg). The teams that lost usually conceded 3-4 goals, or even 8 like Wiener Neustadt, while Grödig were defeated in Salzburg by 1-4.
We needn't wast any words on the deadly attacking duo Soraino-Alan, who already have 22 goals between themselves this season, but when we take a look at Grödig's stats, we may see 12 games in which at least four goals were scored. There were various results: 7-1,6-3,4-3, and four out of five games had 4+ goals.Considering the already described estimation that the defensive tactics will not make it worth their while, there is no reason not to go for at least four goals here in front of full Grödig stands looking for exactly this kind of spectacle. Details

Even if the situation were not as it is today, Leotar would be a complete outsider in Siroki Brijeg, and this is especially the case as we are dealing with a relegation candidate and it's hard to believe that the club from Trebinje can put up some resistance against Siroki Brijeg.
This is a game which depends on the motivation and inspiration of the far better rival and there is no reason to believe Siroki will not go full throttle from the start and convince their visitors that they haven't got a shot. They should score at least two goals to be safe and I believe coach Musa will put this as a goal in this game.
Siroki have had far too many unexpected and unnecessary blunders against weaker teams this season and Musa says this practice was ended with a convincing win against Radnik last Wednesday. Considering the home team have no major absences and can refresh their team, it is clear they will have the power and vigor to press Leotar into defense and try to settle everything by half time. The away team are coming without their best defender and captain Sarab and their only attacker Zecevic and the only thing they can do is defend. But even weaker teams have already beaten Leotar as they are a young, improvised team and the players haven't received their salary in a while now.
Siroki Brijeg should take care of this with at least a two-goal difference, and probably even more as they have been doing for years. Siroki Brijeg have beaten Leaotar in five of their last six league games and four times with a goal difference of two or more goals. Leotar have had a much better team in these games, and now they have the worst team ever and playing a handicap on home team is a logical choice. Details

Travnik and Rudar are both teams of modest quality and weak offensive potential. Although Rudar have scored 15 goals in 12 games, most of that was scored vs Siroki Brijeg (3-3), and vs Leotar and Zvijezda at home in a 2-2 tied game and a 3-0 win. In eight of their 12 matches the Prijedor team scored one or no goals, while Travnik were equally poor on the offense in 10 of their 12 games.
However, the statistics are not even so important prior to this match, as its importance is in the fact that both teams are fighting to avoid relegation. When the pressure is high, the beautiful gameplay takes a step back, and rushing, mistakes and nerves come to the foreground. This is exactly what we're expecting in Travnik today, where the away team will be guarding the starting score, and the home team try to threaten them.
Travnik are in trouble as a few of their standard starting 11 are missing, including two midfielders, Anel Curic and Lastro, who would give the home team a dose of aggression and some flesh in the middle of the pitch, where the biggest battle would be fought. This could lead to less passing to the forwards, and reduced danger to the Rudnik goal. The away team also have a great goalkeeper Bodiroga, one of their main strengths, as his saves rescued them many times from mistakes of the defenders. Bukvic will be replaced by the equally reliable Fejzic on the Travnik goal, so the home team should be OK in that segment as well, and it is a question if Rudar will attack and how much danger would they pose at all.
The Prijedor team would be happy to take one point, they will close off all access and hope for fast breaks. The poor pitch of the Pirot stadium is not a good surface for flashy passing, which is OK since neither of the teams have players with sufficient expertise to play such a game. In closing, we can expect a hard and aggressive game, which should not have more than two goals, as there were no more in their last two meetings either, which Rudar won 1-0. Details

Belgian Genk are in top form, both in their national championship and in Euroleague.Today they have a great chance to settle the issue of getting through the group after only three rounds, which will then enable them to turn their attention to the championship and further advance in ranking there. Rapid Vienna, a team with lots of ups and downs this season, are in their way. They are in constant trouble this season, conceding naive goals and getting injuries of their main players. Those details might be a big strength for Genk, who are unforgiving in their own stadium lately, and Rapid will hardly be an exception.
The home team will surely be in the offensive mood, trying to quickly score and break through the solid bunker of the Vienna team. Should they manage to succeed, they will have a much easier job in the rest of the game. Genk are technically a better team than Rapid, all their midfielders and forwards are individually strong on the offense, while with Burgstaller and the long injured Alar missing for Rapid the only creative force remaining is 34-year-old captain Hofmann. That would not suffice to parry Genk even in a home game, let alone away. This match smells like Genk dominating, with Rapid trying to defend and score from fast counterattacks. However, with all the weaknesses the Vienna team defense have displayed this year, the home team have a much better chance of achieving their goals and reaching a third consecutive victory that will verify their superiority in this group. Details

Altach, who are currently in the lead, are playing the role of favorite against St. Polten, especially on account of their ambition to be promoted this year, and the great winning run of 12 out of 13 home games. You can't argue with that, and who ever is up for it, can try with the home team's win at the odds, that realistically don't have the value for a bigger stake. Precisely because of that and some other things, we chose for the surprise and the home team not being defeated in this game.
We saw the match between Altach and Liefering on Friday. Altach kept a high pace up for the 90 minutes, they were in the lead twice, and allowed the opponent to equalize twice. They got in another lead in 83 minute, and their goalkeeper saved a sitter for 3-3 afterwards. They finally scored another goal few minutes before the time was up. This game drained them both mentally and physically - winning against Liefering, who beat them 5-1 in the first round, was crucial.
It usually takes two or three days to recuperate after a game, and we are inclined to believe Altach's players are much more tired than the opponent, who easily won bottom of the table team Parnford 2-0.
The other reason to have faith in the visiting team is the immense improvement they made lead by the new coach Baumgartner, who is relying on defense and exquisite tactical discipline. Baumgartner only turned his last year's team game into St. Pölten's game this year. He is great when it comes to tactics, and he'll know how stop Altach's game, which is based on strength and robust center forward Aigner, who scored nine goals already. If they stop them, half the work will already be done, and that is the visiting's team recipe for success.
St. Polten won't orient on defense completely, their offense is moving easily, they are flexible and able to create dangerous counter attacks as well. They won 7 points and conceded only one goal in the last 3 matches, which means they'd be bursting with confidence in this match. Altach lost once 1-2, and won once 4-1 in their last season's head to head matches. Maybe this game will be a tie, which would be a go for this bet, which makes more sense than what the bookmakers predict. St. Polten are playing tough and without any fear ever since Baumgarten took over and set things in motion, and the players realized that his last club, third-tier Pasching managed to bring the biggest teams in Austria, such as Rapid and Salzburg, to their knees. Details

PSV are definitely overrated in terms of odds offer for the Groningen match and there's little reason to believe that the Eindoven team could handle the trip to the north of the Netherlands so easily, getting back with all three points. After a radical rejuvenation and selling several of their top players last summer, PSV have been struggling this season and their only real flash of quality was beating Ajax 4-0. However, if it weren't for the Ajax goalie giving away the first goal, who knows how that match would have ended as it was an even contest up to that point, but that goal shattered the visitors' confidence while lifting the home team.

PSV had some major blunders as well, such as losing to Ludogorec in the Europa League, while in the four away games in the domestic league competition they only managed to beat minnows Den Haag by 3-2. In addition to all that, coach Cocu will field a team without several key players, such as Wijnaldum, Park and Rekik, while several players are still tired after playing for their national teams. The PSV boss himself has said that this will be one of their more difficult away games, considering that Groningen are a typical home team that knows no fear with their supporters behind them.

Groningen already have three home wins this season, as only Ajax scraped through undefeated (1-1), and coach Van de Looi can count on some key returnees up front, such as Zeefuik and De Leeuw. Their defense is their weakest department and therein lies the danger of letting in a cheap goal that could make it hard for them to come back, but our impression is still that the offered odds on the home team to stay undefeated are great value in this situation.
And now, to conclude with an anecdote. Yesterday evening, prior to writing this preview, we met an avid bettor who cursed Barcelona for not beating Osasuna, and then he revealed what he is solely looking for on our website. Quote:

- When it comes to betting, I'm only interested in the big teams in individual leagues and I only bet on their games, nothing else. So, for Netherlands I want to know whether Ajax and PSV will win or not.

There, we've accommodated his request. PSV will not win today... Details

Alfred Tatar has done nothing in 12 matches and left Mattersburg 10 points away from first place, but Austria 2 is an unpredictable competition and they could always catch up, or at least threaten to do it. Last season was the best example of this, when Austria Lustenau smashed it in the first part of the championship and then decided to lose most of their matches since they weren't financially sound enough for the top division.
Mattersburg haven't given up their hope of joining the battle for the top and have put Franz Lederer as their assistant coach. Starting with today's match against Horn, they're moving in for the kill. Changing manager often produces positive changes, mobilizing the players and making them more serious and motivated, and such effects are expected in Mattersburg. This team has quality, there are good individuals, and although important midfielder Seidl has been injured, the new duo on the bench has enough advantages to put pressure on weakened Horn, who have conceded the most goals in the league by far and will have to make do without some of their first team players today.
We should expect open football and lots of goals, as well as dominance and aggression on part of Mattersburg players, who are aware that they can't make any more mistakes against weaker rivals. In their first head-to-head this season, Horn weren't saved even when 3-0 up, and given Mattersburg's problems, bookies have set a slightly higher rate on his victory than would have been the case at the start of the season. This is worth a try since Mattersburg should get their form back after changing their manager, especially given their last season's squad which played in first division. Horn are in a different league entirely, their squad isn't complete and that's why the home side are more to be trusted. It's high time they started winning... Details

When you take everything into consideration, it's easy to predict a convincing win for second placed Zrinjski against bottom side Leotar, because it's evident that the away team from Trebinje don't actually believe they can do anything in Mostar. This will be a one-sided match in which practically everything depends on the hosts and their motive to make the huge difference in quality count with a good perfomance and a win. Branko Karacic is too serious of a coach, and Zrinjski are ambitious enough this season, that a gaffe against the Leotar side would be considered a major surprise, because the team from Trebinje are in a terrible financial state and they barely managed to put together a squad in order to compete in the league. Leotar have nothing to threaten the hosts, and only an incredibly good performance from their keeper or if Zrinjski players fail to convert the numerous chances they are bound to have will see the away team not lose here. With such good odds, I see value in picking Zrinjski to win with at least a two goal difference. Out of their last five wins over Leotar in Mostar, four of them came with at least a two goal margin, and the team from Trebinje are worse than ever this season, which makes them the front runner for relegation. Details

The duel of former teacher and student is always very interesting and motivational on both sides, and the coach of Mattersburg Alfred Tatar will be in the focus today. He came from First Vienna to Mattersburg this summer with the task of returning the last season first league team back to the elite rank. At Mattersburg they expected that task to be much easier than it has showed to be so far but the championship is long and even the 10 points behind the leading Altach can be made up for if Mattersburg would start playing according to the quality of players they possess.
But their waking up needs to arrive urgently, already today in Vienna because the amount of fails has been too much so far. Mattersburg can say goodbye to the race for the first place if they continue losing away against weaker rivals. The coach Tatar is quite aware of that and there is no better chance for him to go back to winning than against the club he knows perfectly because he was leading them three years and made the most out of the limited squad. Nothing changed to better in the financially challenged First Vienna since his departure. On the contrary, he took away their best player and scorer Marcus Pink in the last days of the transfer window and today he will lead the offense of Mattersburg.
Tatar has clearly stated in the preview that his team has to play more aggressively in away match, they need to attack and seek not a point but all three. There is no reason not to believe in the plans of the away team and it is doubtful that the home team has the quality to defend themselves. Their main center back Lebedev is out because of accumulated cards, three players are back after being injured and their readiness is questionable and the first striker Rotter is also missing. The hardworking team which has no individuals to decide the match will rely on running and fighting and that is often not enough against the better and maximally motivated opponent.
Mattersburg is definitely a better team on all positions and they proved that by winning 3-0 in their first head-to-head match and the only thing to worry about are the bad moments of the defense and easily conceded goals. But Mattersburg knows how to play for a goal more and they won their only away victory in Horn by turning the 0-3 result to 4-3. Vienna won three times in five home matches but they lost against the leading Altcah and Kapfenberg which are serious teams as Mattersburg should be as well.
We don't think the away team will win this one easily but the coach Tatar is in a do-or-die situation as he has basically the strongest possible lineup at this moment. If he doesn't win he should consider resigning. Details

The bookies estimates concerning this match are more or less similar, concerning the number of scored goals in this game, i.e. the odds are equal for more or less than three goals. I can accept such an estimate, but in betting on scored goals in games where opponents are roughly balanced, the scale tippers are usually the style of gameplay and tactical ploys of the coaches. In the case of Siroki Brijeg and Zrinjski, the fact that this is a derby is also important, since in such matches the saying it is important not to lose comes in to play. This is especially the case in early season matches, when the matches are not decisive, and when there is plenty of time for rectification.
this is not to say that the teams will not go for a victory, but knowing the coaches Musa and Karacic, they will primarily seek to minimize the risk of conceding a goal (especially the away team Zrinjski coach Karacic) and secondarily try to penetrate the opponents defense. Both teams will field 4-2-3-1 formations, with a single spearhead and two insurance defenders in front of the goal, which suggests that the middle of the field will be the stage of the battle with less room for maneuvering within the penalty zone..
Neither team have any remarkable individual players that could spring in to solo action in the entrenched battle, possibly the Brazilian player Wagner in the home team, but he will be thoroughly guarded throughout the match. Zrinjski have several fast players, very good at counterstrikes, which will make the home team careful not to leave them too much open space.
All things considered this will be a balanced match, without many opportunities, and the most promising goal opportunities will be free and corner kicks. Still Zrinjski have the best defense in the league, and Siroki Brijeg have some experienced individual defenders like Jeso and Barisic who will not be easy to fool in the penalty zone. To make a long story short, it will probably be less than three goals scored, just like in 3 out of last 4 matches of Hercegovina derby. I will repeat the saying- it is important not to lose the derby. Details

The preview said it all and there is no need to ponder why is Austria from Lustenau the favorite in Hartberg. The home team is facing this match in quite a disarray and the coach Bruno Friesenbichler has 13 players and two inexperienced goalkeepers (19 and 20 years old) to form the first 11. There will be changes in positions here and forced solutions with roles in which the young players will difficultly handle and as the three usual forwards are missing the question is who will be in the tip of the offense of Hartberg. To add to all that, they played 120 minutes of futile battle in the Cup and dropped out against the weak third rank team. So there is not much to expect from the host in this match, especially not in the offense, while the away team are in very good shape and mood and should dictate the events in the field. Austria has a complete lineup and they are motivated to take back at Hartberg for a defeat in the 2nd round when the players of Austria dominated the field but missed to score two penalty kicks. Then the goalkeeper of Hartberg was the captain Rindler and not the 19-year-old Waltl who will be the goalkeeper of the home team today.
The away team from Lustenau are stronger on individual positions and it would be like that even if Hartberg had a complete lineup and all that should be especially obvious now. Thiago, Jailson, Salamon, Kargho and the other offensive players of the away team are too strong for the defense of Hartberg and Austira should take three points if they enter the match fully and don't underestimate the opponent.
The tradition is on the side of the away team as well. In the last five visits to Hartberg they have three wins and two draws. For the end we will cite one of the fans of Austria who wrote on the biggest club forum the following: "We will not win in Hartberg today only if all the players overeat at a gas station and get sick to the stomach." Details

Radnik played very well home during the last season, having been defeated only to Zeljeznicar, but the situation is a bit different this year, even though three matches are not enough to make any general conclusion. However, narrow wins against Zvijezda (1-0), and Vitez (2-1, scored in the last seconds of the match), and the defeat to Zrinski 1-3 indicate that Bijeljina is not as good as they were last season, even though 12 points out of 8 rounds, five of which were the away matches, are pretty good. But, they've played four easiest opponents in the league, and changed their game style to a style that focuses on fast breaks. All that, together with the realistic value of the away team, says that Bijeljina could have a difficult task against Siroki Brijeg today, and that they don't play the big role of favorite like it seems according to the bookmakers.

Siroki Brijeg did really well so far against strong opponents, but failed miserably against the weak ones, like Zvijezda and Vitez, who beat them. If they want stay on top, they have to start winning points against weaker teams as well, which should technically be easier. They have extra motivation - they want to make amends for the last season's 0-4 failure at this stadium . We should bear in mind that they'll have one extra day off compared to the home team, which is very important in current first league busy schedule. The visiting team's bench seems stronger as well, while three first line up players can't be in the match for Radnik today, and there are no adequate substitutes for them.

This could be a tough and tie match, and odds to Siroki Brijeg not winning are worth the bet. For the bravest, even win doesn't seem unrealistic. Details

On Saturday, we witnessed two inefficient teams in Trebinje, and today in Gradacac the two rivals, who are in a better mood because of their achieved victories, could play just as hard and tight, with less than two goals in 90 minutes. And this time the starting point for the bet on less than three goals in total is the visiting team’s strategy. Mladost Velika Obarska is a rookie in the league, a team with a lot of experienced, but technically poor players, whose game is not creative, especially in away games.
Mladost is coming to Gradacac to defend themselves with discipline and patience, one point would satisfy them and as long as the result is tied, they won’t even try to cross the center line. If they were to cross the center and try something, they still lack individual qualities for solo actions or continuous pressure. They have played 0-0 three times this season, and only twice in eight games there were three or more goals in total.
Zvijezda is the home team and they will try to dictate the game and earn all three points, but it is also a team without outstanding individuals, and when the rival team forms a bunker and all 10 players are in front of the penalty area, they will run out of ideas and patience, and start to kick the ball around without a plan, which rarely brings success. Even if the home team takes the lead, they will not take too much risks, and fatigue should not be ignored since they are playing Wednesday to Saturday for the second week in a row, and for Bosnia and Herzegovina that’s a considerable effort.
Zvijezda played five times this season with less than three goals, in three out of four games at home. In Gradacac we might withes the victory of Zvijezda over Mladost, but we pick the score 1-0, 0-0 or 2-0. Just pick anything under three goals. Details

The games in which the weaker team wins over the better team are not unusual for the Bosnia and Herzegovina's Premier league. This derby of the rear of the league between Leotar and Vitez could be a classic example of that. The thing is, neither of the clubs has players or game with which they can achieve something with individual solutions or moves. It all mostly comes down to unorganized attacks, endless passes to the penalty box and waiting for a free kick. Most often consequence of this are numerous games with a small number of goals or without any at all. We watched two Leotar's games this season, against Zvijezda and Travnik, and, in both games, only one accidental goal was scored after a mistake made by the defense or the goalkeeper. In the same matches we counted the number of accurate passes in a row. And the situations in which there were more than four or five passes in a row can be counted on the fingers of one hand, especially on the opponents half. The football is awful, but sometimes you have to take a masochistic look just to see how bad someone can really be.
That is the kind of game we are predicting will be played in Trebinje today. The away team Vitez will stand in the back and defend the starting result, while Leotar will have a weak initiative. They will move around the Vitez's penalty box like a cat around hot porridge. A dribble or a breakthrough? Forget about that! There is no one to do that in either of the two teams.
In conclusion, we don't see any way in which there could be more that three goals in total here. For those who are more brave, there is an option that there will be a maximum of one or no goals, or an exact score of 1-0 or 0-0. Both teams haven't scored in three of their last seven games, and they scored three or more goals on only two occasions. But their mutual clashes are more important and generally harder. Details

When Sankt Pölten and Kapfenberg met in the first round it was a game of cat and mouse and the host Sankt Pölten celebrated with the result of 4-0 and it could have been more. Two months later the same rivals will meet at Kapfenberg and the hosts are the theoretical favorites. Yes, a lot has changed in those two months. Kapfenberg consolidated themselves and managed to score three wins in three matches but it is not an unexpected turn of events. What is unexpected is the negative streak of six losses for Sankt Pölten. That team is definitely worth more judging by its quality. Not for the title battle though, as they announced too optimistically ahead of the championship, but for the first five places definitely. The replaced coach Scherb often talked about a psychological block which blocks his players and there is truth in that. For the confidence into their own abilities to return they need a good match and a positive result, they need a turning point in the season.
Maybe the good opportunity for that is today at Kapfenberg where the expectations are not so high and so neither is the pressure. A relaxed approach might bring a better and more concentrated performance. If you win against somebody 4-0 it cannot be an accident nor impossible to repeat only two months later. Sankt Pölten meanwhile brought a new coach Baumgartner who became prominent by winning the Cup with a third league team Pasching and so proved that he is a top tactician. Surely Baumgartner has examined the opponent's game well and prepared solutions for it and the motive of the away team should be even greater because they desperately need to end the long streak of losses. Kapfenberg will seek payback for the defeat at the start but they have an easier situation and so the hosts might not try as hard as the players of Sankt Pölten.
Seeing that we watched the first match of these two opponents in July and that 90% of the same players will be out on the field today, the estimation is that Sankt Pölten can be more than a match for the host and finally take at least one point away and in the same way we think that coaching qualities of Gerald Baumgartner also go to the advantage of the away team. Last season both of their matches in Kapfenberg ended without a winner, with the results being 1-1 and 0-0. Details

Ried and their results in the first seven rounds are to be applauded, but it is time for their winning series to end, as the best team of the league, Salzburg, are coming to town. Salzburg's claim to being best will require proving, of course, but the team coached by German Roger Schmidt will have plenty of motivation to do so.
Fumbles again Ried cost Salzburg their title last year, as they have not managed to beat their tough opponent in four games, squandering as much as nine points through one loss and three ties. Smart men and good sports teams learn from their mistakes though, so the lesson was surely not lost on Salzburg, and they will want payback for all the frustrations from last season.
The guests are arriving to Ried in full, with their strongest lineup at the moment, and a string of players that Ried cannot hope to match. Soriano, Mane, Alan and Kampl are a quartet of offensive aces the home team will find difficult to neutralize. It is hard to imagine that Ried will be able to mount an adequate answer, as they are missing their main creative power, Zulj, and a few more pieces that made their winning mechanism so far.
The home team will surely not go down without a fight, but when they are motivated and in the mood, Salzburg are too fast and too powerful even for team way better than Ried. Quality plus lots of motive add up to Salzburg winning, and Ried will look for a make up exam against an easier opponent.
Of the last 15 league clashes between these rivals, Ried won only once, losing nine times. Details

Wolfsberg gained only two points in the first seven matches. Coach Slobodan Grubor was removed, which was expected from the club's management. Grubor didn't manage to follow in Nenad Bjelica's footsteps, eve though he had the same team as the last season, who fought to appear in the Europa League. Dietmar Kühbauer, the new strategist, is a rather young, authoritative and fiery coach who'll ask his team to give their all from the beginning until the last minute. Kühbauer couldn't have a better debut. Not only did he have two weeks to get to know and prepare his team, he also has Admira as the opponent, the club he coached until the end of the last season and he knows to pieces. Besides, Admira is in crisis, they lead Wolfsberg by two points only. It seems reasonable to bet on Wolfsberg, because his players will do everything to impress new leader and successfully start advancing to better positions. Shortly after his arrival, Kühbauer announced an offensive approach with two classic forwards. We shouldn't doubt that Wolfsberg will take the risk from the very beginning of the match and go to the front line. Given that two new defenders were brought in the end of the transfer window, the defense should be less penetrable and their reactions more determined. This should result in high-quality offense. Admira's game this season is weak. In the last round, they were literally smashed on their own field by Ried. They lost 1-4 and little can be improved with slim line up and a couple of injured first-team players. To put it bluntly, this type of team is difficult to trust in an away game hosted by the motivated opponent, who is of higher quality than the current results suggest. We're under impression that Wolfsberg will lead the match, and if they manage to take the mental burden of the first score off their backs and not take any counter attack or free kick goals, they'll be very close to the very much needed triumph. Dietmar Kühbauer's arrival should put in motion the current favorite, so we tip on their win against the humble Admira. Details