Famalicao vs Belenenses
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Today’s free tip is in the Portuguese Liga 1 encounter between Famalicao and Belenenses.
I daresay a lot of the hipsters are jizzing their pants over Famalicao winning at Sporting Clube de Portugal last time out. I thought it was possible but didn’t take the risk because, even without Bruno Fernandes, Sporting Clube de Portugal can be a hard side to outscore. It’s not hard to score against them but scoring more than them is tough, and newly-promoted Famalicao deserve respect for it. I wouldn’t get carried away, though – it was a good time to face Sporting Clube de Portugal, and Famalicao took the opportunities that came their way. I’ll be more impressed if they repeat the feat in the reversal of this fixture.
Still, having said all that, Famalicao are a good team. I wish I could say it’s because they’ve struck gold with a tactical approach, or because they’re ushering through a new generation of wonderkids. However, the reality is that Famalicao are a good side because of their financial clout. They’re far from a settled, professional outfit but they do look good, especially when getting forward. This is a team to be very wary of because of their potential. Outside of the big three, not many Portuguese clubs could bring in the likes of Racic, Perez, and Centelles.
Famalicao have responded well to their gauntlet thrown down before them after getting promoted, so props to them for that. They should do well but to make positive things happen so soon is noteworthy. I think that boss Joao Sousa deserves the credit for that. The team is yet to convince defensively but they’re scoring enough goals to win games, they’re playing aggressively enough to intimidate their opponents, and they look confident. Again, this is a team to take seriously, and if they can outscore Rio Ave, Desportivo Aves, Pacos de Ferreira, and Sporting Clube de Portugal, outscoring Belenenses should not be all that problematic.
I’m not one of the people that automatically associates Belenenses with being crap purely because they’re at the bottom of the table. I know that the Lisbon club has so much more to offer but they’re just not converting their chances well enough. They seldom struggle to actually create them, but putting the ball in the net is proving to be frustrating for tonight’s visitors. You all saw what happened when they did score their chances in Madeira recently though. That’s the gamble you’re taking when opposing Belenenses – you’re assuming they won’t show up.
That’s just it – Belenenses aren’t that bad of a team. I quite enjoy watching them play, as it goes. However, the capital club needs to be more ruthless in front of goal or they’ll soon find themselves relegated. They’re not the worst side in the Liga 1 though, and should not be regarded as such. They actually play some very nice football. Still, it’s patterns that tend to help the most, and the most prevalent pattern of the capital club’s campaign is that they don’t score when they should. That’s where they’re at, and should that pattern repeat today, then the visitors are in deep trouble here.
Again, I do think that Belenenses should be treated with more respect by the average bettor. They’re more victims of circumstances and luck than a lack of quality. However, with things the way they currently are, I can’t help but trust Famalicao to score more goals than Belenenses.
Verdict: Famalicao to win at 4/5.
Saturday’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.
Austrian Bundesliga:
Salzburg vs Austria Vienna
Wolfsberger AC vs Swarovski Tirol
St. Polten vs LASK Linz
Belgian Eerste Klasse:
Cercle Brugge vs AS Eupen
KV Mechelen vs Club Brugge
AA Gent vs Kortrijk
Royal Excel Mouscron vs Zulte-Waregem
Sint-Truiden vs Racing Genk
Brazilian Serie A:
Flamengo vs Sao Paulo
Bulgarian A PFG:
Levski Sofia vs Botev Vratsa
Croatian Prva Liga:
Varazdin vs Rijeka
Slaven Koprivnica vs NK Osijek
Czech Republic Liga 1:
Sigma Olomouc vs Slovacko
Zlin vs Baumit Jablonec
Slavia Prague vs Mlada Boleslav
Danish Superligaen:
FC Copenhagen vs Silkeborg
English Premier League:
Sheffield United vs Liverpool
Bournemouth vs West Ham United
Aston Villa vs Burnley
Chelsea vs Brighton & Hove Albion
Crystal Palace vs Norwich City
Tottenham Hotspur vs Southampton
Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Watford
Everton vs Manchester City
Estonian Meistriliiga:
Tallinna Kalev vs FCI Levadia Tallinn
Nomme Kalju vs Maardu
Finnish Veikkausliiga:
Inter Turku vs FC Honka Espoo
HJK vs IFK Mariehamn
FC Lahti vs HIFK
RoPS vs VPS
Finnish Ykkonen:
Ekenas IF vs Haka Valkeakoski
TPV vs Kajaani
AC Oulu vs MyPa
French Ligue 1:
Olympique Lyonnais vs Nantes Atlantique
Girondins de Bordeaux vs Paris Saint-Germain
OGC Nice vs Lille OSC
Angers SCO vs Amiens SC
AS Monaco vs Stade Brestois
Metz vs Toulouse
Stade de Reims vs Dijon FCO
German Bundesliga:
RB Leipzig vs Schalke 04
TSG Hoffenheim vs Borussia Moenchengladbach
Mainz 05 vs VfL Wolfsburg
Augsburg vs Bayer 04 Leverkusen
Paderborn 07 vs Bayern Munich
Bv09 Borussia Dortmund vs Werder Bremen
German Bundesliga 2:
Jahn Regensburg vs Hamburger SV
VfL Bochum vs Darmstadt 98
Karlsruher SC vs Heidenheim
Hungarian Liga 1:
Mezokovesd-Zsory vs Budapest Honved
Kaposvari Rakoczi vs Diosgyori VTK
Zalaegerszegi TE vs Paksi SE
Debreceni VSC vs Puskas FC
Fehervar vs Ujpest
Icelandic Pepsideild:
Breidablik Kopavogur vs KR Reykjavik
FH vs UMF Grindavik
Valur Reykjavik vs HK
Stjarnan Gardabaer vs IBV
KA vs Fylkir Reykjavik
IA vs Vikingur Reykjavik
Israeli Ligat Ha’al:
Hapoel Hadera vs Ironi Kiryat Shmona
MS Ashdod vs Hapoel Haifa
Hapoel Tel-Aviv vs Bnei Yehuda Tel-Aviv
Beitar Jerusalem vs Maccabi Tel-Aviv
Hapoel Be’er Sheva vs Hapoel Ra’anana
Italian Serie A:
Juventus vs SPAL
Sampdoria vs Internazionale
Sassuolo vs Atalanta Bergamo
Italian Serie B:
Frosinone vs Cosenza
Juve Stabia vs Cittadella
Venezia vs Pisa
Empoli vs Perugia
Lithuanian A Lyga:
Panevezys vs Kauno Zalgiris
Dutch Eredivisie:
VVV Venlo vs Heerenveen
AFC Ajax Amsterdam vs Groningen
Fortuna Sittard vs Sparta Rotterdam
Norwegian Eliteserien:
Rosenborg BK vs Brann Bergen
Portuguese Liga 1:
Maritimo Funchal vs Moreirense
SL Benfica vs Vitoria Setubal
Famalicao vs Belenenses
Russian Premier League:
Krylya Sovetov Samara vs Tambov
FK Rostov vs Dinamo Moscow
Lokomotiv Moscow vs Zenit St. Petersburg
Spanish Primera Liga:
Athletic Club vs Valencia CF
Getafe vs Barcelona CF
Granada vs Leganes CF
Atletico Madrid vs Real Madrid
Swiss Super League:
St. Gallen vs FC Thun
Young Boys Bern vs FC Sion
Swiss Challenge League:
Stade Lausanne-Ouchy vs SC Kriens
Grasshopper Zurich vs Chiasso
Turkish Super Lig:
Denizlispor vs Kasimpasa
Alanayaspor vs Sivasspor
Galatasaray vs Fenerbahce
Enjoy your free betting tips!