Perth Glory vs Western United
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Today’s free tip is in the Australian A-League encounter between Perth Glory and Western United.
Even without Diamanti, I fancy the visitors to grind out the win here. I’m still not a fan of Aloisi’s football but hey, it works. They’ve done really well with it this season, and the players clearly believe in him, which is a very hard relationship to buy. That’s why, despite their limited squad, they’re currently in the title race.
It’s hard to believe that the Melbourne club can maintain their title push but stranger things have happened, I suppose! At some point they’re going to lose Kilkenny, Lacroix, or Lustica, and then their tactical approach won’t work anywhere near as well. For now though, they look really solid and consistent. They had to ride their luck last time out in the 1-0 win over Sydney FC as they were hammered in the first-half. However, an intelligent change from Aloisi at the break saw them easily stifle The Sky Blues in the second-half, and even nick a winner as the game went on. As I said above, things are decidedly harmonious in the Western United camp at the moment.
Playmaker Diamanti is out, as I said above, but my unpopular opinion is that he’s finally reached the end of his usefulness in Australia; he’s done very little this season. I don’t really have an issue with Milanovic filling in for him, or even Lustica if Aloisi hands Krhin a starting berth alongside Kilkenny. Pain’s potential absence is a bigger problem but one that they’re dealing with because Pierias works hard, and Prijovic has really warmed to his role as the lone man up top, filling in for those around him where possible. Again, this team simply works as a unit.
Once they have a lead, they’re usually close to impossible to breach. More fluid attacking teams can upset the Western United rhythm from time to time, it’s true, but Perth Glory don’t fall into that category, at least not right now. In other words, even in a windy Tasman stadium, Western United should have things their own way, and that generally means that they win 1-0. Perth Glory have enough about them to ask a few questions but are still trying to find fitness after their forced Covid-19 break, and that makes them sitting ducks here.
Unhelpfully, the ‘hosts’ have lost Sturridge to injury – again. The early estimates are that they won’t see him now until the end of March at the very earliest. Everybody else is reportedly available, although I have my doubts about that because Malik hasn’t been used lately, Jones is still recovering from his injury (as is Armiento), and newbie Stanojevic hasn’t made any of their squads lately so he’s clearly not ready to play. They do have options though, Glory.
Again, I do feel sorry for the designated home team. They’ve not had any chance to build up momentum this season, and they’re still yet to play in their own stadium this season, although that is soon to change. They’ve had injury problems, have had Covid-19 rife in their squad on at least two occasions, and can’t keep their big marquee signing fit. It’s just bad luck central, really. They’re trying to turn the tide but they’re only impressive in spells, which is understandable.
They were outplayed by the Mariners in their first game back, and should have lost – but a last minute leveller from Stynes against the run of play bailed them out. They did better against Macarthur FC last time out but still gave the lead away far too easily, and were too wasteful at the other end. Again, they’re still finding their feet, and I don’t believe Garcia knows either his best eleven nor the best formation to use just yet. Whilst that is the case, I find it tough to believe that they’ll be able to deal with one of the most disciplined and consistent teams in the country.
For me, Diamanti or no Diamanti, this should be an away win.
Verdict: Western United to win at evens.
Sunday’s Thoughts
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. For confidence ratings, you’ll need to go to the members section here.
Australian A-League:
Perth Glory vs Western United
Austrian Bundesliga:
Austria Klagenfurt vs SV Ried
Austria Vienna vs Wolfsberger AC
WSG Tirol vs Rapid Vienna
Sturm Graz vs Hartberg
Belgian Eerste Klasse:
Club Brugge vs Antwerp
Racing Genk vs Kortrijk
Standard de Liege vs AA Gent
Zulte-Waregem vs RFC Seraing
Bulgarian A PFG:
Lokomotiv Sofia 1929 vs Cherno More Varna
Croatian Prva Liga:
Sibenik vs Istra 1961
NK Osijek vs Dinamo Zagreb
Czechia Liga 1:
Karvina vs Ceske Budejovice
Hradec Kralove vs Slavia Prague
Sigma Olomouc vs Teplice
Sparta Prague vs Zlin
Danish Superligaen:
Aalborg BK vs Silkeborg
FC Nordsjaelland vs Randers
Viborg vs FC Copenhagen
OB vs FC Midtjylland
English Premier League:
West Ham United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers
English League Cup:
Chelsea vs Liverpool
Faroese Super Cup:
KI vs B36 Torshavn
French Ligue 1:
AS Monaco vs Stade de Reims
Angers SCO vs Racing Club Lens
Stade Brestois vs Lorient
Clermont Foot 38 vs Girondins de Bordeaux
Metz vs FC Nantes Atlantique
Troyes vs Olympique de Marseille
Olympique Lyonnais vs Lille OSC
German Bundesliga:
VfL Bochum vs RB Leipzig
Augsburg vs Bv09 Borussia Dortmund
German Bundesliga 2:
Hamburger SV vs Werder Bremen
Heidenheim vs SV Sandhausen
Jahn Regensburg vs Fortuna Dusseldorf
Hungarian Liga 1:
Ujpest vs Mezokovesd-Zsory
Debreceni VSC vs MTK Budapest
Israeli Ligat Ha’al:
Ironi Kiryat Shmona vs Hapoel Jerusalem
Beitar Jerusalem vs Bnei Sakhnin
Italian Serie A:
Torino vs Cagliari
Hellas Verona vs Venezia
Spezia vs AS Roma
SS Lazio vs SSC Napoli
Italian Serie B:
Ascoli vs Crotone
Cittadella vs Frosinone
Monza vs Lecce
Reggina vs Pisa
Dutch Eredivisie:
AZ Alkmaar vs Feyenoord Rotterdam
Vitesse Arnhem vs NEC Nijmegen
Sparta Rotterdam vs PSV Eindhoven
Go Ahead Eagles vs AFC Ajax Amsterdam
SC Heerenveen vs FC Utrecht
Portuguese Liga 1:
Vizela vs Portimonense
SL Benfica vs Vitoria Guimaraes
Estoril vs Boavista
FC Porto vs Gil Vicente
Portuguese Liga 2:
CD Nacional de Madeira vs Trofense
Rio Ave vs FC Porto II
Farense vs Vilafranquense
Leixoes Matosinhos vs Estrela
Romanian Liga 1:
Arges vs Voluntari
Botosani vs CS Mioveni
FCSB vs FCV Farul Constanta
Spanish Primera Liga:
Villarreal vs RCD Espanyol
Sevilla CF vs Real Betis Balompie
Real Sociedad vs CA Osasuna
Barcelona vs Athletic Club
Swedish Svenska Cupen:
Brommapojkarna vs Djurgarden
Halmstad vs Brage
Sylvia vs Kalmar FF
Sirius vs Trelleborg FF
Orebro vs Orgryte
Eskilsminne vs AIK Solna
Skiljebo vs Elfsborg Boras
Degerfors vs GIF Sundsvall
Swiss Super League:
St. Gallen vs Grasshopper Zurich
Lausanne Sport vs Luzern
FC Zurich vs FC Basel
Turkish Super Lig:
Altay vs Gaziantep FK
Giresunspor vs Goztepe
Hatayspor vs Yeni Malatyaspor
Alanyaspor vs Konyaspor
Galatasaray vs Rizespor
Enjoy your free betting tips!