TFT Issue 185!
FreeHowdy guys and girls!
Featured game
Steaua Bucharest vs CSKA Sofia – lay Steaua Bucharest at evens.
Today’s featured game is the UEFA Europa League game in Romania between heavyweights Steaua Bucharest and Bulgarian giants CSKA Sofia.
Yes, I fully intend to oppose Steaua Bucharest for the rest of time, it’s true. They’re simply a very average side this year and I’ll readily go against their unreliable and ineffectual team at any moment where the odds merit it because I can virtually guarantee that this side will implode at somepoint.
I think that time could well be today. Ok, they’ve battled their way past a couple of newbies to the Liga and a good but somewhat unfamiliar Universitatea Cluj – fair play to them. Now they’re playing an experienced European side that have a new weapon in ex-Dinamo Bucharest attacker Zicu, who would love to score against Steaua, I’m sure. CSKA Sofia look so much more dangerous in attack this season thanks to their new signings and although their defending needs to improve, they’re a dangerous attacking side, unlike their hosts. Steaua only have Costea as a regular threat in front of goal – the rest are fairly predictable and useless. Their defence is solid enough but I have zero faith in this Steaua team right now and it’ll remain that way until they make some much-needed signings.
For me, there’s a lot of value in laying average Steaua here. Bucharest is never an easy away game but CSKA have a better team than Steaua, in my opinion. The visitors could and really should win this game if they approach it correctly so laying Steaua is the way forward for me here although given my record of late, you may as well take Steaua -1.5 as an insurance bet!!
Verdict: Lay Steaua Bucharest at evens.
Team news
I can only help with some games today, guys – too many teams for me to provide information on although I’ll obviously do my best!
Belgian teams
Club Brugge – Stenman and Vleminckx are absent.
Anderlecht – Mazuch, Vargas, Mbokani, and Schollen are absent.
Standard de Liege – Van Damme is absent.
Bulgarian teams
CSKA Sofia – Popov is absent.
Litex Lovech – Sandrinho and Jelenkovic are absent.
English teams
Birmingham City – Mutch, Jerome, Zigic, and King are absent.
Fulham – Davies and Riise are absent.
Stoke City – Etherington, Delap, and Pennant are absent. Upson could debutise.
Tottenham Hotspur – Sandro, Palacios, Pienaar, Modric, and Jenas are absent.
Finnish team
HJK Helsinki – Ojala has been sold so Lahti will debutise.
German teams
Schalke 04 – Metzelder, Raul, and Kluge are absent. Moritz, Jones, Farfan, and Hoogland are doubts.
Hannover 96 – No absentees.
Greek teams
Panathinaikos – Christodoulopoulos is absent. Quincy and Vitolo could debutise.
AEK Athens – Burns, Gerrerio, and Kontoes are absent.
PAOK Salonika – Salpingidis, Savini, Ivic, and Paparzoglou are absent.
Lithuanian team:
Ekranas Panevezys – Dedura and Andelkovic are absent. Umeh and Gleveckas could return.
Macedonian team
Rabotnicki Skopje – Kumbev, Stojanov, and Bogdanovic are absent.
Dutch teams
AZ Alkmaar – Didulica, Boymers, and Romero are absent.
PSV Eindhoven – Engelaar and Wuytens are absent.
Norwegian team:
Rosenborg BK – Larsen is absent.
Polish teams
Legia Warsaw – Vrdoljak is absent. Hubnik and Ljuboja are doubts.
Slask Wroclaw – Spahic is absent.
Romanian teams
Vaslui – Papp, Wesley, Gladstone, and Canu are absent.
Gaz Metan Medias – Munteanu, Eric, Buchta, Dudita, Raul del Campo, and Parvulescu are absent.
Rapid Bucharest – No absentees.
Dinamo Bucharest – Pulhac is absent.
Steaua Bucharest – Matei and Costea are absent.
Russian teams
Lokomotiv Moscow – Torbinskiy is a doubt.
Alaniya Vladikavkaz – Bazayev and Mashukov are absent. Gnanu could feature.
Spartak Moscow – McGeady is absent ahead of a supposed controversial move to Zenit St.Petersburg.
Scottish teams
Celtic – Izaguirre, Hooper, Kayal, Loovens, and Hooiveld are absent.
Hearts – Taouil, Kyle, and C.Elliot are absent.
Rangers – Weir, Papac, Whittaker, and Bartley are absent. Lafferty is a doubt.
Serbian teams
Red Star Belgrade – Adi is a big doubt.
Partizan Belgrade – Vukic is absent and Milijkovic is a doubt.
Slovenian team
Maribor – Tavares is a doubt.