Sigma Olomouc vs Sparta Prague
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Today’s free tip is in the Czechia Liga 1 game between Sigma Olomouc and Sparta Prague.
For most of this campaign, Sparta Prague have had issues with absentees. They lost wonderkid Hlozek for months, who is still out now, lost defensive midfielder Krejci II for four games due to suspension (never learnt not to jump with his elbows), lost Stetina due to injury months ago (and he’s still out too) etc. It’s not been pleasant for them. They’ve coped quite well, all things considered, but it wasn’t enough to satisfy the board, who booted Kotal after the embarrassing home defeat against chronically out-of-form neighbours Bohemians 1905. Enough was enough, in other words.
Their replacement for Kotal has certainly split Sparta Prague fans down the middle, too – it’s Pavel Vrba, of course, who was jobless after Ludogorets Razgrad sacked him and his backroom staff. I can’t really blame him for the A PFG champions’ demise, though – they simply stopped signing good players. I mean, what did they think was going to happen – that they’d win through the title through sympathy? Anyway, Vrba was axed, meaning he could join another club for free – so he has; Sparta Prague! He’s a very good attack-minded manager who has done great things with Viktoria Plzen before now, which is where the controversy comes from. Still, I think it’s a tremendous appointment for the capital club, and I think things will improve with him there, given time.
Sparta Prague have got a good squad available for this game, which helps. They’re still without some players, yes, but there’s enough here to steer them to victory against Sigma Olomouc. The home team plays very slick football but doesn’t really have the quality to hurt teams unless they’re invited to do so. Sparta Prague might usually do the latter but with a new manager to impress, I doubt it. Therefore, I expect Julis and Kozak to shine in attack, and when they do, Sparta Prague tend to win. I still need to see more from Krejci I (winger), playmaker Pavelka, and Moberg-Karlsson before I trust this team implicitly once more but the quality is there, as we’ve all seen before, and I’d like to think that Vrba will prove it. At least there’s always Dockal to fall back on, eh?
I still think Kotal did quite a good job at Sparta Prague, you know. They became a lot more proud and industrious under his stewardship, which is two things they’ve simply not had for a lot of years. I believe Vrba will make this team a success once more, and get all of the credit for it, but Kotal did well to achieve what so many before him had failed to do, and was rather unlucky on the absentees front. I think good times are now here for Sparta Prague though, and Olomouc is a good place to start things off.
Ordinarily, this would be a complex game because their hosts lack nothing when it comes to work ethic and cohesion, but Sigma Olomouc are without three instrumental players today, namely line-leader Nespor (not as clinical as he should be, but very annoying to play against), midfielder Houska (their best goal-scorer from midfield), and Hala, who can play on the right wing or at right-back. All three have been regulars this season, and all three have been very good. Sigma Olomouc’s starting eleven may be good, but there’s not much by way of depth in this squad, which makes their transfer amnesty this month all the more puzzling to me. Then again, I don’t know how long they’re out for so perhaps they’ll be back soon.
For now though, Sigma Olomouc have problems. They’re facing a team that is superior to them, they’re lacking in a solid route to goal, and they’re going to struggle to contain their motivated opponents too. As good as French midfielder Poulolo has been since joining, and as much as Gonzalez has impressed this season, I’m really not convinced that this is enough to suddenly overcome Sparta Prague. They’re going to require a very charitable display from their opponents, and I’m inclined to doubt that they’ll be in a charitable mood for obvious reasons.
Having said all that, Sparta Prague haven’t won in Olomouc since 2016 so let’s not expect a stupidly easy game here, folks. Sigma Olomouc have carved a living for themselves at this level by constantly getting the best out of their limited squad, and playing good attacking football with a great deal of togetherness and confidence. That pretty much guarantees that they’ll never be easily undone by any team at this level, although Slavia Prague look a bit beyond everybody at the moment, don’t they? Slavia Prague aside though, teams do find Sigma Olomouc annoying to face. Their absentees should hand Sparta Prague the advantage today but I’d be surprised if they made light work of a tough fixture.
In short, I like the away win, but have a change of pants nearby if you back it.
Verdict: Sparta Prague to win at 11/10.
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.
FIFA World Club Cup:
Tigres UANL vs Palmeiras
Ulsan Horang vs Al Duhail
Australian A-League:
Newcastle Jets vs Melbourne City
Central Coast Mariners vs Western United
Belgian Eerste Klasse:
Germinal Beerschot vs Antwerp
Sporting Charleroi vs Zulte-Waregem
Racing Genk vs RSC Anderlecht
AA Gent vs AS Eupen
Brazilian Serie A:
RB Bragantino vs Flamengo
Croatian Prva Liga:
Sibenik vs Varazdin
Istra 1961 vs Dinamo Zagreb
Czechia Liga 1:
Baumit Jablonec vs Slovacko
Teplice vs Pardubice
Marila Pribram vs Slavia Prague
Sigma Olomouc vs Sparta Prague
Danish Superligaen:
SonderjyskE vs Vejle
FC Nordsjaelland vs OB
AC Horsens vs FC Copenhagen
AGF vs Lyngby
Brondby vs Aalborg BK
English Premier League:
Tottenham Hotspur vs West Bromwich Albion
Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Leicester City
Liverpool vs Manchester City
Sheffield United vs Chelsea
Finnish Suomen Cup:
Jippo Joensuu vs Klubi-04
French Ligue 1:
Stade Brestois vs Girondins de Bordeaux
Montpellier HSC vs Dijon FCO
OGC Nice vs Angers SCO
Nimes Olympique vs AS Monaco
AS Saint-Etienne vs Metz
FC Nantes Atlantique vs Lille OSC
Olympique de Marseille vs Paris Saint-Germain
German Bundesliga:
TSG Hoffenheim vs Eintracht Frankfurt
Arminia Bielefeld vs Werder Bremen
German Bundesliga 2:
Paderborn 07 vs Heidenheim
Greuther Furth vs Wurzburger Kickers
Karlsruher SC vs Jahn Regensburg
Hungarian Liga 1:
Paksi SE vs Budafoki MTE
Zalaegerszegi TE vs Puskas FC
Ferencvaros vs Fehervar
Israeli Ligat Ha’al:
Hapoel Hadera vs Hapoel Tel-Aviv
Italian Serie A:
Benevento vs Sampdoria
Udinese vs Hellas Verona
AC Milan vs Crotone
Parma vs Bologna
SS Lazio vs Cagliari
Italian Serie B:
Reggiana vs Virtus Entella
Dutch Eredivisie:
AFC Ajax Amsterdam vs FC Utrecht
FC Groningen vs Feyenoord Rotterdam
Willem II vs ADO Den Haag
VVV Venlo vs Sparta Rotterdam
Portuguese Liga 1:
Sporting Braga vs FC Porto
Portuguese Liga 2:
Vizela vs FC Porto II
Academico Viseu vs Mafra
SL Benfica II vs Casa Pia
Spanish Primera Liga:
Real Sociedad vs Cadiz
Athletic Club vs Valencia CF
CA Osasuna vs Eibar
Real Betis Balompie vs Barcelona
Swiss Super League:
FC Basel vs FC Sion
Servette vs Luzern
Young Boys Bern vs Lausanne Sport
Turkish Super Lig:
BB Erzurumspor vs Kayserispor
Ankaragucu vs Sivasspor
Denizlispor vs Antalyaspor
Besiktas JK vs Konyaspor
Enjoy your free betting tips!