SJK vs TPS
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Today’s free tip is the Finnish Veikkausliiga encounter between SJK and TPS.
I like opposing nowadays because they don’t learn from their mistakes. It’s been that way for a few years now, ever since they unnecessarily sacked Valakari. They’ve powered their way through managers, changed personnel at the drop of a hat, and yet still delivered many, many unconvincing displays. They’re now utterly soulless, SJK, and no matter who they sign, they never really impress anymore. It’s a shame, really – their project was really impressive when it first began. Now it’s lying in tatters, and they can barely make the top six in the Veikkausliiga without serious assistance from other teams, deliberate or not.
On paper, SJK’s squad is as good as ever – well, in attack, at least. Mero and Hatakka’s departure has ruined what little remained of their defence. Yaghoubi and Malolo both left too, and although I like both of them, I can understand both departures. Yaghoubi was too feisty and inconsistent, and Malolo couldn’t stay fit for long enough. Former wonderkid Tolonen also moved on, and I find that transfer to be premature. He showed a lot of skill during his time in the Veikkausliiga, even at his young age. The Finns don’t have many players like that. He needed his edges smoothing a tad, I grant you, but to sell him was short-sighted.
Still, SJK bought well, as ever. Goalkeeper Viitala returned to Finland from Sandefjord in Norway. Atakayi’s loan move was made permanent. Isaksson and Sid joined from IFK Mariehamn. Markkula joined from Inter Turku. Mantyla joined from HIFK. Most importantly of all, Ngueukam returnd to the club. Essentially, SJK have tried to change the way they attack; to change their options. Markkula is a very attack-minded full-back, which is understandable as he used tobe a winger. Isaksson’s movement in midfield is what was missing with playmakers like Hetemaj running the show, and Sid can be counted in that too. They want more energy, SJK, and they’ve got it. Ngueukam’s arrival is great for them though. He’s a pure match-winner at this level, both as a dribbler and a finisher. He can carry SJK at times, and given how frequently they fail as a unit, that’s necessary for them to not embarrass themselves too much this season.
Those players join a squad already containing proven English poacher Ions (now fully fit after a lengthy lay-off), Hetemaj, Arthur, Oliynyk etc. – it’s impressive. It’s just that it never materialises in reality. The Suomen Cup displays under Honkavaara has seen Ngueukam barely getting a kick, which is just baffling to me. I shouldn’t be surprised by anything SJK do nowadays but something like that still does. It’s interesting that the club appointed Honkavaara as their new manager, too. Doing a good job at KuPS is straightforward enough. I’ve not seen anything from him to suggest he – or any Finn, for that matter – can do this job.
TPS are not as good as SJK. They’ve only just returned to the Veikkausliiga, armed yet again with a lot of young, unproven players due to a lack of financial backing at the club. I believe the Turku club enters this game with a better sense of togetherness and better mentalities than that of their hosts, though. TPS battle well at the start of campaigns because they give a shit. They close their opponents down, making life hard for them, and they defend well too. It never lasts because they don’t have the depth but the first-half of each campaign is when TPS can surprise teams, and perhaps we’ll see another ‘surprise’ today.
The early signs from TPS in the Suomen Cup were that they were as annoying as hell to beat. As is pretty regular for them now, they still lack a goal threat. They signed Lahde from relegated VPS, who will contribute to an extent, but it’s only scratching at the surface. Aaritalo has not been a good striker for some years now, although he does put himself about well. Young Ivorian striker Olawale has impressed in brief glimpses but there’s no telling how good he’ll be. No, I’m afraid that TPS’ attack is still very much a sore point.
Their shape, cohesion, and defensive setup though? I’m a fan. I think Hernandez is going to do really well at this level, and he helps the younger lads around him a lot. They have good defensive midfielders too, TPS. Again, breaking this team down is a nightmare, at least until they run out of energy in a few months. Tactically, Pikkarainen’s boys look good, and so they should. I appreciate they only got promoted from a poor Ykkonen, ultimately beating KPV in the play-offs, but they were still very smart in that division. They weren’t really a top team down there, other than in name and reputation, but they played with the command of one. That might not be enough to keep them up this season, but it’s enough to give them a fighting chance.
Most Finnish teams can beat one another. The only real exception is HJK, as they’ve got plenty of money and pulling power. Therefore, backing a team to win a Veikkausliiga match at odds shorter than evens needs some pretty substantial justification, and there simply isn’t any for trusting SJK yet. I refuse to believe that Honkavaara knows his strongest eleven yet, and I also refuse to believe that SJK have managed to solve this frail mentalities problem that has been badgering them for two or three years now. This is a team that should really struggle to beat TPS because of their own shortcomings, not because TPS are secretly amazing or anything like that. If SJK magically turn it on, they will win this game. They almost never do though, so I’m happy to trust battling TPS to win the game with a +0.5 Asian Handicap at 93/100, especially with the likes of Chavez, Markkula, and Hetemaj definitely out for the home team.
Verdict: TPS to win with a +0.5 Asian Handicap at 93/100.
Wednesday’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 Sturm Graz
Rapid Vienna vs LASK
Hartberg vs Wolfsberger AC
Bulgarian Cup:
CSKA Sofia vs Lokomotiv Plovdiv
Croatian Prva Liga:
Inter Zapresic vs Dinamo Zagreb
NK Osijek vs Rijeka
Czech Republic Cup:
Slovan Liberec vs Sparta Prague
English Premier League:
Bournemouth vs Newcastle United
Arsenal vs Norwich City
Everton vs Leicester City
West Ham United vs Chelsea
Estonian Meistriliiga:
Flora Paide vs Tammeka
Kuressaare vs Tulevik
FCI Levadia Tallinn vs Nomme Kalju
Finnish Veikkausliiga:
Haka Valkeakoski vs FC Honka Espoo
FC Lahti vs HJK
HIFK vs KuPS
Ilves vs IFK Mariehamn
SJK vs TPS
Israeli Ligat Ha’al:
Hapoel Haifa vs Maccabi Haifa
Maccabi Tel-Aviv vs Beitar Jerusalem
Hapoel Ra’anana vs Bnei Yehuda Tel-Aviv
Italian Serie A:
Internazionale vs Brescia
Bologna vs Cagliari
SPAL vs AC Milan
Hellas Verona vs Parma
Lecce vs Sampdoria
ACF Fiorentina vs Sassuolo
Norwegian Eliteserien:
Odd vs Bodo/Glimt
Viking Stavanger vs Sandefjord
Haugesund vs Start Kristiansand
Aalesund FK vs Mjondalen
Stabaek vs Stromsgodset
Rosenborg BK vs Valerenga Oslo
Portuguese Liga 1:
Belenenses vs Tondela
Sporting Clube de Portugal vs Gil Vicente
Russian Premier League:
FK Ufa vs Rubin Kazan
FK Orenburg vs Ural Sverdlovskaya Oblast
Tambov vs Zenit St. Petersburg
Arsenal Tula vs Akhmat Grozny
FK Rostov vs FK Krasnodar
PFC Sochi vs Dinamo Moscow
Spanish Primera Liga:
Deportivo Alaves vs Granada CF
Valencia CF vs Athletic Club
Real Betis Balompie vs Villarreal CF
Real Valladolid vs Leganes CF
Swedish Allsvenskan:
IFK Norrkoping vs Elfsborg Boras
Kalmar FF vs Ostersunds FK
Malmo FF vs Djurgarden
Swiss Super League:
Lugano vs FC Basel
Neuchatel Xamax vs St. Gallen
FC Thun vs FC Zurich
Swiss Challenge League:
SC Kriens vs Chiasso
Enjoy your free betting tips!