Kayserispor vs Istanbul BB
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Today’s free tip is in the Turkish Super Lig encounter between Kayserispor and Istanbul BB.
I backed Kayserispor to beat Rizespor fairly recently, which they did. The new owner at the club paid some of the team’s wages, and thus the mercenaries that are there opted to put in better displays. That was the method to my madness, and it paid off, despite the absence of bullish Umut Bulut in attack. What I’ve found strange since then has been the whispers that Adebayor and Sismanoglu are going to be cut loose. They’re two of Kayserispor’s better attacking options, whether they regularly show it or not.
I’ve honestly not made up my mind as to why that would be happening at Kayserispor. Have they already given up on Super Lig survival, and are preparing for relegation? It’d be hard to believe that. Are they freeing up some money for important January signings? Or do they simply view them as not worth the expense? There’s also the possibility that they can voluntarily leave the club if they’ve not been paid “x” amount of their salary by this stage, as per Super Lig rules. Either way, I find that this happening now is just a touch bizarre as Turkish clubs can’t sign players yet, and players can’t sign for Turkish clubs yet, other than to say they’ll join in January. Surely it’d be worth putting it off for a bit longer? Curiously enough, the most cemented news out of the Kayserispor camp was that battling veteran striker Bulut has left the club, and promptly signed for Yeni Malatyaspor, joining them in January when the transfer window opens. Although by no means a prolific goal-scorer, Bulut leads a line really well, and every team in Turkey knows it, hence his immediate move to another club at the ripe old age of thirty-six. They’ll miss him.
Anyway, the point here is that Kayserispor appear to be a lot weaker in attack. Their remaining players are finally getting paid though, so improved displays are to be expected from an underrated team. I do have concerns over their ability to score goals, though. Bulut, Sismanoglu, and Adebayor in one fell swoop? That’s too much. Kravets is a decent striker but he’s the only one left that is. It wouldn’t be so bad if they were using Ntep in some kind of support role but he’s barely getting a look in. I don’t have any real issue with the Kayserispor defence other than that the ball will keep coming back at them with such a limited attack in front of them. Their attack, though – it’s been ripped to pieces by bizarre decisions behind the scenes, and that doesn’t bode well against a pretty stable Istanbul BB side.
I’m not the biggest fan of the visitors under Okan. I think he had a thankless task to begin with, attempting to replace a legend like Avci, who Besiktas JK fans are now glad to have in charge rather than baying for his blood. I think he’s taken to it as well as he can, to be fair to the former Galatasaray man. I just don’t think that any old manager could walk into this club and replace such a good tactical manager who basically turned this club from nothing into a side that regularly finishes in the top four, albeit with the help of the Turkish government’s funds. However, that financial backing left, Avci left, and a number of stars left so it was a tough place to come to. In that respect, I think Okan has done reasonably enough.
This isn’t the old Istanbul BB though, a team that could grind out wins against most – if not all – Super Lig outfits. This one is still quite cautious, especially when sending men forward, but lacks the defensive organisation to constantly deny teams. They seldom concede more than one goal, to be fair, but there’s always a token goal creeping past them these days. Still, against a Kayserispor without a real attack, I have to believe that Istanbul BB both could and should keep a clean sheet today.
If that is indeed the case, the sole risk here is whether Istanbul BB go to town on their hosts or not. I don’t think they will. It’s still not in their nature to go gung-ho against teams. Aside from that, it’s well-documented that this is one of the most competitive Super Ligs there has been for many, many years, and there simply aren’t easy games anymore, particularly away from home. Kayserispor may be bottom of the table but there are worse teams in the league than them. This Kayserispor team, when paid, can be quite good. Istanbul BB have a pretty good record in Kayseri but it’s only even been via measured displays. I don’t remember the last time they scored more than one goal in Kayseri, and they always treat their hosts with huge respect, as they should. Subsequently, I think Istanbul BB will do what they always do here – play it safe, wait for opportunities to come, and sit on whatever they get. That should be enough for them today.
Assuming that happens, backing under 2.5 goals at such generous odds would make a lot of sense here.
Verdict: Under 2.5 goals at 6/5.
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:
Central Coast Mariners vs Adelaide United
Belgian Eerste Klasse:
AA Gent vs Club Brugge
Sint-Truiden vs Antwerp
RSC Anderlecht vs Racing Genk
English Premier League:
Watford vs Manchester United
Tottenham Hotspur vs Chelsea
German Bundesliga:
Fortuna Dusseldorf vs Union Berlin
Paderborn 07 vs Eintracht Frankfurt
German Bundesliga 2:
VfL Bochum vs Jahn Regensburg
Heidenheim vs Osnabruck
SV Sandhausen vs Holstein Kiel
Israeli State Cup:
Hapoel Tel-Aviv vs Katamon
Beitar Jerusalem vs Hapoel Rishon LeZion
Italian Super Cup:
Juventus vs SS Lazio
Italian Serie A:
Atalanta Bergamo vs AC Milan
Lecce vs Bologna
Parma vs Brescia
Sassuolo vs SSC Napoli
Italian Serie B:
Pescara vs Trapani
Pisa vs Cosenza
Pordenone vs Ascoli
Dutch Eredivisie:
AFC Ajax Amsterdam vs ADO Den Haag
FC Groningen vs FC Emmen
FC Utrecht vs Feyenoord Rotterdam
Vitesse Arnhem vs VVV Venlo
Spanish Primera Liga:
Leganes CF vs RCD Espanyol
CA Osasuna vs Real Sociedad
Real Betis Balompie vs Atletico Madrid
Levante CF vs Celta de Vigo
Real Madrid vs Athletic Club de Bilbao
Turkish Super Lig:
Genclerbirligi vs Sivasspor
Kayserispor vs Istanbul BB
Fenerbahce vs Besiktas JK
Enjoy your free betting tips!