Brazil vs Ukraine
FreeToday’s a bit of a shitter so the only game that stands out as to having any value for me is the International Friendly in England between Brazil and Ukraine. Neither side requires much introduction here and as this game is what tend to refer to as a “money-spinner” (a game entirely generated to make money) I would recommend using caution if taking this tip.
New coach Menezes has enjoyed a good start to life in charge of Brazil with a 2-0 win at USA in USA and a recent 3-0 win against Iran in the United Arab Emirates. I won’t say that Brazil look back to their best – I think that’s somewhat impossible if you consider the current state of football both inside and outside of Brazil – but I would argue that they’re looking much more themselves than when legend Dunga was in charge. I like how Menezes is giving the arising Brazilian talent the chances that they deserve rather than going all-out to preserve the respectable name of Brazil as some managers would have done and I think Brazil look better for it.
Brazil squad for this game:
Goalkeepers – Victor, Jefferson, Neto
Defenders – Daniel Alves, Thiago Silva, David Luiz, Andre Santos, Mariano, Rever, Adriano
Midfielders – Lucas, Ramires, Carlos Eduardo, Philippe Coutinho, Sandro, Elias, Wesley, Giuliano
Strikers – Robinho, Alexandre Pato, Nilmar, Andre
As you can see for the Brazilian team, Menezes has opted for a youthful approach so it’ll be interesting to see how they fare tonight. Most people will be happy to see the likes of Pato, Robinho, and Nilmar in attack for this game and I am too when you consider that my tip heavily relies upon Brazil scoring goals. However, I’m happy to see Dynamo Kiev striker Andre there as he showed promise when at Santos so perhaps he’ll get a chance to shine against some familiar faces tonight. I like Menezes’ midfield options with the likes of Carlos Eduardo, Ramires, Wesley, and Sandro all able to pass a ball, beat a man, and ultimately change the game in a big way. Their defence isn’t overly convincing but then again, when is it?! Brazil’s strength was always keeping the ball and with the pitch a Pride Park looking in good condition, you have to feel that Brazil should be able to do that rather well tonight, particularly if the current weather holds (as it should).
Their opponents Ukraine also bring a new manager into this game. However, unlike Brazil, this is actually their third manager of the year Kalitvintsev, and even he’s only a temporary replacement. With that in mind, it’s no surprise whatsoever that the national team of Ukraine has been in something of a disarray for a while now, hence their unconvincing results. They’ve drawn three times and won once in their last four games, which isn’t a particularly bad record on paper. However, if you consider that both Netherlands and Chile fielded second strings when they visited the Ukraine and that Ukraine were outplayed in Poland by Poland and looked very predictable in a draw at home to Canada of late, that record suddenly doesn’t look as impressive. It’s no surprise that that is the case, either, with such a lack of consistency behind the scenes so I expect it to remain this one for the forseeable future, irrespective of who is fielded in their games.
Ukraine squad for this game:
Goalkeepers – Pyatov, Dikan
Defenders – Kucher, Mandzyuk, Romanchuk, Khacheridi, Fedetskiy, Polyovyi
Midfielders – Tymoschuk, Husyev, Rotan, Gai, Aliev, Oliynyk, Khudobyak, Kulakov
Strikers – Shevchenko, Voronin, Milevskiy, Seleznyov
As you can see, Kalitvintsev has named a more experienced squad than his counterpart but there’s still something missing from this Ukraine side. I think it’s fair to observe that this side is in a “transitional period” with their good players either being emerging talents or ageing veterans so I see yet another reason to expect another unconvincing Ukrainian display tonight. Ukraine’s strength is usually their reliable defence but there’s two things that the Ukrainian defence is always susceptible to and that is pace and players running directly at them. Unfortunately for Ukraine, that’s exactly what they’re up against tonight. Barring Kucher and Mandzyuk, there’s only a handful of caps between their remaining defenders so I’m not massively convinced by them there. I suspect they’ll field Pyatov in goal, who is a good goalkeeper but who is very error-prone at the same time so expect some long-range free-kicks from Brazil in this game because if I can see that Pyatov is dodgy then so can Menezes! Ukraine’s strength in this game is in midfield. Anatoly Tymoschuk is one of the best holding midfielders in Europe, in my humble opinion, and he’s going to have to be today against some very good opponents. If he performs well then I do fear for the handicap. Aliev’s free-kicks and constant incision from midfield should be well-known for those of you who have watched the Russian Premier League this season and he’ll be a potent threat today too. Husyev and Rotan are both dangerous players too and will most probably form an instrumental part of what should be a 4-5-1. That said, will Kalitvintsev ditch the Shevchenko-Milevskiy partnership for this to try and hold off their superior opponents? Kalitvintsev fielded an adventurous 4-3-3 with Shevchenko supported by Voronin and Seleznev in their home game against Canada a few days ago but this is an entirely different game. If he does go 4-5-1 then it’ll have to be experienced Shevchenko in attack; Milevskiy simply isn’t playing well for Dynamo Kiev this season and it’s no surprise when you consider the rifts that manager Valery Gazzaev had with the Dynamo Kiev board before eventually being sacked recently. Voronin isn’t a particularly good attacker; he’s just a workhorse. Seleznev is little more than a target man but if you put any of these strikers with Shevchenko, you can see how the Ukraine attack would be successful.
Will it work today though? Not by my reckoning. I don’t necessarily doubt the potency of the Ukrainian attackers nor their talented midfield but I doubt their consistency, their tactics under their new manager, and their ability to get the ball off Brazil today. This will be a long game for the Ukrainian side if they play without the ball and if Tymoschuk fails to turn up then that’s the kind of game that awaits them. Ukraine may have the experience edge over Brazil but on this pitch with some encouragable and talented youngsters on show for the South Americans, I think it’ll balance out quite well.
I fear for the relatively inexperienced Ukrainian defence against a very potent Brazilian attack – I think we’ll see plenty of goals from Brazil with that in mind. Menezes has his players very hungry to play and with that in their favour tonight, i think they’ll have more than enough to overcome the handicap against Ukraine at what I would say are slightly generous odds despite a rather youthful Brazilian squad having been named.
Key players:
Tymoschuk for Ukraine could ruin my bet if he shows up but if not then I expect this bet to be successful.
Robinho for Brazil has to show his true colours just as he did at Santos and if he does then this inexperienced Ukrainian defence will have a night to forget.
Verdict: Brazil to beat the -1.5 goal handicap at 3/2.
Monday’s Picks
My tips:
Nothing else appeals to me today – sorry guys! Feel free to check the list below for the remainder of my thoughts on today’s games though!
International Friendly:
Brazil vs Ukraine (played in England) (8) -1.5 handicap
UEFA European U21 Championship Qualifiers:
Sweden U21 vs Switzerland U21 (5) 2-1
Scotland U21 vs Iceland U21 (6) 1-1
Baltic League:
Levadia Tallinn vs Blazma Rezekne (6) under 2.5 goals
English League One:
Swindon Town vs Bristol Rovers (4)
Singaporean S-League:
Tampines Rovers vs Geylang United (6) over 2.5 goasl, both sides to score
Enjoy your free betting tips!