Granada CF vs Omonia Nicosia
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Today’s free tip is in the UEFA Europa League encounter between Granada CF and Omonia Nicosia.
The last time these two teams met, it unsurprisingly finished with Granada CF grinding out a win. They’ve been very good this season, the Spaniards. They’ve taken a leaf out of Getafe CF’s book, not necessarily needing all of the ball; just being better than their opponents when they have it. I expect more of the same tonight.
They’re good at pretty much everything, Granada CF, which I like. They’re not great at anything, so don’t be confused on that front. They’re just made to do well in Europe, if that makes sense. They’re gritty, hard-working, and laden with players that are happy to do the dirty work. Their attacking style is more direct, and they’ve got the necessary flair players to pull it off. They’re good from set pieces, and they’re good at sitting on leads. It’s a very handy, jack-of-all-trades setup at this club, and one that has displayed tremendous resolve, not to mention desire to do well in the UEFA Europa League. I would not take this team lightly. They’ve surprised most teams they’ve come up against, and they’ll go through from this group too.
The bookies have now realised how good Granada CF are, at least for now, but in my opinion they’ve gone too far in the opposite direction. I don’t doubt that they can beat Omonia Nicosia by two goals, but I wouldn’t bank on it. The bookies want you to hit the -1.5 line at just shy of evens, but that’s not for me, I’m afraid. I’m sure they’ll do enough to grind out the win, and they seldom give much away, but they’re not a flamboyant team. The general image that is conjured by the simple terminology of ‘Spanish team’ is one that moves the ball gracefully, elegantly, and casually hammers teams – that’s really not Granada CF’s way though. They play more like an English team than a Spanish team, albeit with more comfort on the ball.
Subsequently, I’m expecting another tenacious Granada CF display tonight. Breaking teams down takes a while for them to do, generally speaking, and that may be the case again here. In the reversal of this fixture, there was at least some onus on the Cypriots to go for the jugular, which simply isn’t the case tonight. They’re expected to get beat here, so it wouldn’t surprise me to see them go even more defensive, something more reminiscent of how they played in Athens against Olympiakos Piraeus in the UEFA Champions League. That’s not impossible for Granada CF to beat, but it’s more annoying for them. They’re more of a counterattacking team than anything so I’m more comfortable backing them away from home than at home, Granada CF. Indeed, I would not be wholly surprised if the game ended 0-0 here – Granada CF don’t really need to win, and the visitors just want to avoid defeat.
I also don’t think it should be overlooked as to how good a manager Henning Berg is. In each of their games in Europe this season, Omonia Nicosia has looked seriously well-prepared for everything their opponents have had to throw at them. The only problem they’ve had, as ever, has been scoring goals. No matter how many chances they create, this team does not convert them well enough. The only one capable of scoring goals is Slovakia’s Duris, and he’s suspended tonight anyway! They’ve only scored two goals in this group, Omonia Nicosia. One required brilliance from Bautheac – which can happen, but isn’t all that common – and the other was a freak shot from the half-way line from Jordi Gomez. It’s just not enough for Europe, I’m afraid.
It’s a shame because Omonia Nicosia deserve more recognition than they’re getting because their results aren’t positive – yet their displays are. They control where opponents have the ball really well, they defend intelligently rather than in a full-blooded fashion, they’re not afraid to play a dirtier game if required, and nothing seems to faze them. In terms of composure and planning, Omonia Nicosia are excellent. It’s just that they’re not at all good at grinding out wins because, as I said earlier, they lack firepower, and Duris’ absence tonight is particularly damaging on that front. They rely a bit too much on physical attributes rather than quality in the final third but if they added a bit of quality, I think the islanders would be quite the force to be reckoned with.
Still, that’s another story for another day. The current Omonia Nicosia side does not look capable of beating Granada CF tonight, let alone in Spain. I think they can contain their hosts for a lengthy duration though, and that sure would be their best shot at actually winning anyway, trying to snatch a goal from a set piece or penalty. I don’t see them taking unnecessary risks against their streetwise hosts, and I don’t see Granada CF going above and beyond to beat them either. Therefore, I envision a scrappy affair which really should go under 2.5 goals.
Verdict: Under 2.5 goals at evens.
Thursday’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.
UEFA Europa League:
CSKA Sofia vs Young Boys Bern
Molde FK vs Arsenal
Sporting Braga vs Leicester City
AEK Athens vs Zorya Lugansk
Sparta Prague vs Celtic
Lille OSC vs AC Milan
Maccabi Tel-Aviv vs Villarreal CF
Qarabagh FK vs Sivasspor
LASK vs Antwerp
CSKA Moscow vs Feyenoord Rotterdam
Wolfsberger AC vs Dinamo Zagreb
AA Gent vs Red Star Belgrade
Slovan Liberec vs TSG Hoffenheim
CFR Cluj vs AS Roma
Dundalk vs Rapid Vienna
Bayer 04 Leverkusen vs Hapoel Be’er Sheva
OGC Nice vs Slavia Prague
Standard de Liege vs Lech Poznan
Rangers vs SL Benfica
PSV Eindhoven vs PAOK Salonika
Granada CF vs Omonia Nicosia
SSC Napoli vs Rijeka
AZ Alkmaar vs Real Sociedad
Tottenham Hotspur vs Ludogorets Razgrad
Copa Libertadores:
Club Guarani Asuncion vs Gremio
Copa Sudamericana:
River Plate Montevideo vs Universidad Catolica (CHI)
Defensa y Justicia vs Vasco da Gama
Atletico Junior Barranquilla vs Union La Calera
Brazilian Serie A:
Fortaleza vs Goias
Enjoy your free betting tips!