Karabukspor vs Akhisarspor
FreeWe’re always looking for new recruits to help us so please click here if you want to find out more about the ways you can help us (e.g. local input, watching games)!
Our personal betting tips service continues to make profit so click here if you are interested in a free trial!
There are 6 bankers and 8 value tips in the Members Section today so feel free to sign up here to see them + team news!
Akhisarspor being favourites to win this one – I can live with that. Karabukspor have had an atrocious season. Akhisarspor being as short as they are to win it? I can’t accept that.
I recognise that Karabukspor are doomed. I recognise that, on paper, they’ve got a weak team. I’m also acutely aware that most of their squad hasn’t been together for the majority of this Super Lig campaign so I can understand anybody wanting to oppose Karabukspor. However, despite it being against all odds, the team have galvanised really well. In 2018, they’ve actually put in some very strong displays, Karabukspor. No, they’re probably not going to stay up, but they’re making it hard for teams to beat them. Alanyaspor didn’t deserve to win here – they lost 1-0. Genclerbirligi had to move heaven and earth to manage it. Sure, they’ve been hammered by Istanbul BB and Besiktas JK away from home but what do you expect to happen in such circumstances? I thought they’d give Besiktas JK a bit of a game but I knew they’d lose the game.
Bluntly put, Karabukspor are giving teams a harder ride at the moment than their Super Lig placing suggests they would. I appreciate that a lot of punters nowadays are fans of statistics and suchlike, desperate to oppose teams at the bottom of the league, but Karabukspor aren’t playing like a team at the bottom of the league. They’ve got a bit about them. I’ve seen worse teams than them, and they sure do have some good individuals in their squad in Alexe, Skulason, and Leandrinho. I would not be quick to underestimate this team.
The other side of the coin is that Akhisarspor are not playing particularly well. They somehow won against Bursaspor recently despite not deserving to. They’ve not controlled games well. They don’t keep teams out. Sure, I’ll credit them with generally being able to score goals but this isn’t a team that Karabukspor should fear right now, in my view. Furthermore, let’s not overlook that Akhisarspor are known throughout Turkey for being a team that do not travel well; they excel in home games. They’ve won just one away game this season, Akhisarspor, which was one of the most bizarre Turkish games I’ve ever seen, which is saying a lot. They hammered Trabzonspor because their hosts attacked them relentlessly without getting anywhere. If I remember correctly, it ended up costing the Trabzonspor manager his job too. Other than that, this team have not won an away game this season. Why should that start now? They’re not even playing well.
I won’t deny that Akhisarspor have better players than Karabukspor. Seleznyov is a good target man, Paulo Henrique, Emnes, and Helder Barbosa all bring substantial attacking pace and skill, and new signing Mujangi Bia adds a lot of steel to their central midfield. They’ve got some good options. They’re just not a consistent team and they seldom put even half as much effort into their away games as they do into their home games so I don’t see why they should be given the time of day here.
To me, the odds on laying Akhirsarspor are well worth taking here.
Karabukspor to win with a +0.5 Asian Handicap at 83/100.
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 to prevent endless questions about my thoughts on certain games. For confidence ratings, you’ll need to go to the members section here.
Argentinian Superliga:
San Martin de San Juan vs Talleres de Cordoba
Arsenal de Sarandi vs Atletico Huracan
River Plate vs Godoy Cruz de Mendoza
Banfield vs Boca Juniors
Austrian Bundesliga:
Salzburg vs St. Polten
Belgian Eerste Klasse:
AA Gent vs KV Mechelen
Sporting Charleroi vs Standard de Liege
Royal Excel Mouscron vs Waasland-Beveren
Bulgarian A PFG:
Lokomotiv Plovdiv vs Pirin Blagoevgrad
Ludogorets Razgrad vs Slavia Sofia
Levski Sofia vs Botev Plovdiv
Croatian Prva Liga:
Dinamo Zagreb vs Hajduk Split
Slaven Koprivnica vs Cibalia Vinkovci
Czech Republic HET Liga:
Sigma Olomouc vs Viktoria Plzen
Sparta Prague vs Slovan Liberec
Danish Superligaen:
FC Helsingor vs AC Horsens
Randers vs Hobro
FC Midtjylland vs FC Copenhagen
Aalborg BK vs Brondby
English FA Cup:
Rochdale vs Tottenham Hotspur
Finnish Suomen Cup:
IFK Mariehamn vs Inter Turku
French Ligue 1:
OGC Nice vs Nantes Atlantique
Lille OSC vs Olympique Lyonnais
Olympique de Marseille vs Girondins de Bordeaux
German Bundesliga:
Augsburg vs VfB Stuttgart
Borussia Moenchengladbach vs Bv09 Borussia Dortmund
Israeli Ligat Ha’al:
Ironi Kiryat Shmona vs Hapoel Ashkelon
Hapoel Haifa vs Maccabi Netanya
Italian Serie A:
Torino vs Juventus
Benevento vs Crotone
Bologna vs Sassuolo
SSC Napoli vs SPAL
Atalanta Bergamo vs ACF Fiorentina
AC Milan vs Sampdoria
Dutch Eredivisie:
Roda JC Kerkrade vs FC Utrecht
Feyenoord Rotterdam vs Heracles Almelo
Twente Enschede vs Sparta Rotterdam
PEC Zwolle vs AFC Ajax Amsterdam
Portuguese Liga 1:
Moreirense vs Chaves
Vitoria Setubal vs Pacos de Ferreira
FC Porto vs Rio Ave
Vitoria Guimaraes vs Sporting Braga
Portuguese Liga 2:
Real vs SL Benfica II
FC Porto II vs UD Oliveirense
Varzim vs Famalicao
Academico Viseu vs CD Nacional de Madeira
Cova Piedade vs Penafiel
Uniao Madeira vs Santa Clara
Sporting Covilha vs Leixoes Matosinhos
Spanish Primera Liga:
Real Sociedad vs Levante
Atletico Madrid vs Athletic Club de Bilbao
RCD Espanyol vs Villarreal CF
Real Betis Balompie vs Real Madrid
Swedish Svenska Cupen:
Jonkopings Sodra vs Frej
Tvaaker vs Orebro
Vasalund vs Hammarby
Malmo FF vs Dalkurd
Brommapojkarna vs Gefle
BK Hacken Goteborg vs IFK Varnamo
Swiss Super League:
Sion vs Lausanne Sport
Young Boys Bern vs Thun
FC Zurich vs Luzern
Swiss Challenge League:
Aarau vs Chiasso
Vaduz vs Wohlen
Turkish Super Lig:
Karabukspor vs Akhisarspor
Bursaspor vs Yeni Malatyaspor
Trabzonspor vs Istanbul BB
Kasimpasa vs Galatasaray
Enjoy your free betting tips!