TFT Issue 339!

18/03/2012

Howdy guys and girls!

Featured game

PSV Eindhoven vs Heerenveen – away win with +1.5 handicap at 13/10.

Today’s featured game is the Eredivisie game in Netherlands between heavyweights PSV Eindhoven and this season’s surprise package Heerenveen.

PSV may boast bigger names, a bigger stadium, and a bigger fanbase than Heerenveen but I will be surprised to see that show on the pitch today. They may have brought in former central midfielder Cocu as their new boss but there’s work that needs doing behind the scenes that simply cannot be done overnight and I think Cocu will find it very hard to begin with.

In attack, PSV simply don’t have any problems, barring the odd case of youthful naivety. Toivonen, Matavz, Mertens, Lens, and even ageing giant Vennegoor of Hesselink would walk into any other side in the league. PSV’s strikers are amongst the best in the Netherlands so there can be no doubts about them there. In midfield, the emerging trio of Labyad, Wijndalum, and Strootman may have a lot to learn but they all show tremendous promise. Barring a ball-winner, I don’t see many problems there. In defence, though, everything looks weak. There is no communication with goalkeeper Isaksson at any time. There is no organisation, no decent line, and no quality full-backs. Bluntly, I am surprised every time PSV keep a clean sheet because this side is not capable of doing so off their own backs. For today’s game, Swedish goalkeeper Isaksson is absent, as is pacey wide man Labyad. The latter is a problem but not a great one as attackers are something that PSV are not short of. Isaksson is PSV’s best goalkeeper, however, irrespective of whether he communicates with his defence or not. Who is going to come in for him – Tyton? Sinouh? It’s far from ideal.

I certainly feel that there’s a window of opportunity for Heerenveen to exploit here and with only one player absent from their squad, I don’t see why they can’t manage to spring a surprise. This side is a classic example of how a good tactical approach can propel even the most average of sides into a good league position. Heerenveen are not in the same class as PSV, for example, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they finished above their illustrious hosts. Why? Because Heerenveen can hold a lead, for starters. Heerenveen are the best counter-attacking side in the country for my money with big Dost in great form, not to mention pacey Narsingh and Assaidi. Duricic is having such a good season in midfield that Serbia actually capped him lately, just to give you an idea as to how well Heerenveen are playing. Much like PSV, their squad is rather youthful but their defence is infinitely more reliable and Heerenveen have no problem alternating between attack mode and defence mode whilst PSV really do.

Effectively, unless PSV really turn it on here, I think Heerenveen can really upset them in this game. Heerenveen have been impossible to play against at home this season for any side and it’ll take a better PSV performance today to win this game than I’ve seen them produce for some months. Heerenveen are a tough nut to crack and are more than capable of damaging a dodgy PSV backline. Therefore, the away win with a +1 Asian Handicap really appeals to me at 10/11.

Verdict: Heerenveen to win with a +1 Asian Handicap at 13/10.

Additional games

Bologna vs Chievo Verona – home win at 6/5.

Quality-wise, form-wise – everything points to a Bologna win here. I’ve enjoyed watching Bologna lately because they’ve been efficient, consistent, determined, and effective in front of goal. They’ve got some very good players, not least young Ramirez, who is already attracting jealous eyes from the likes of Juventus if we are to believe the media. The fact is that Bologna are a very solid and galvanised unit at the present time and I fancy them to give any side a good game at home, especially on the back of a 1-3 rout at Lazio. They’re hosting a Chievo side that only knows how to defend, a Chievo side that presents very little in the way of an attacking threat either at home or away from home. Ergo I expect a low-scoring game but Bologna to ultimately break through and win this game 1-0 or 2-0.

One thing that is really bothering me is the odds, though. I just can’t work out why Bologna are priced as generously as they are – it makes no sense. I’m a little suspicious because I know that Chievo are the most corrupt side in Serie A so I’m hoping that this isn’t a fix or something daft like that. Aside from the above, I find tremendous value on in-form Bologna to continue their rich vein of form against an inferior Chievo side.

Verdict: Bologna to win at 6/5.

Team news

Australian A-League:

Gold Coast United – Brown, Halloran, and Rozic are doubts. Porter, MacAllister, Beekmans, Moss, and Broadfoot are absent.
Perth Glory – Miller and Burns are doubts. Coyne, Neville, Berger, and Sikora are absent.

Belgian Eerste Klasse:

Standard de Liege – Buzaglo and Mujangi Bia are absent.
OH Leuven – Hayen, Dehond, and Nuys are absent.
AA Gent – M’Sila, Lepoint, El Ghanassy, Mareval, and Soumahoro are absent.
Kortrijk – Vandenbroek and Czvitkovics are absent.
Germinal Beerschot – De Decker, Losada, and Laerenbergh are absent.
Lokeren – No absentees.
Sint-Truiden – Andrade, Van Crombrugge, Volders, and Schouterden are absent.
Anderlecht – De Sutter, Vargas, Molins, Marecek, Juhasz, and Deschacht are absent.
Zulte-Waregem – Matton, Sterckx, Delaplace, D’Haens, and Habibou are absent.
Mechelen – Vanloo, Vidarsson, Ruiz, and Van Tricht are absent.
Lierse SK – Mathisen, El Gabbas, and Frans are absent.
Mons – M’Bow, Matumona, and Bourabia are absent.
Westerlo – Deelkens, Owusu, Roef, Marcao, Adams, and Hemmen are absent.
Racing Genk – Koteles, Hubert, Toszer, Vossen, Buffel, and Masika are absent.
Cercle Brugge – Verbist, Sergeant, and Mertens are absent.
Club Brugge – Dhoest, Van Gijseghem, Odjidja, Stenman, Deschilder, and Lestienne are absent.

Bulgarian A PFG:

Ludogorets – Kishada, Marcelinho, and Styanov are absent.
Svetkavitsa – Taukol has left.
Botev Vratsa – No news.
Levski Sofia – Yovov, Ramos, and Calvo are absent. Iliev and Taseski are doubts.
Kaliakra – Phillipov is absent.
Lokomotiv Plovdiv – Lazarov, De Carvalho, Venkov, Dakson, Serginho, and Rodriguez are absent.

Cypriot Division 1:

AEL Limassol – Parpas, Enrique, Edmar, and Airosa are absent.
Apollon Limassol – Merkis, Hemdani, Kolar, and Benzoukane are absent.
Ermis – Goumenos is absent.
AEK Larnaca – Pintado and Demetriou are absent. Hofland has retired through injury.

Czech Republic Gambrinus Liga:

Ceske Budejovice – Strasky, Brezinsky, Ondrasek, and Bakala are absent.
Slovacko – Ondrejka, Danicek, Fujerik, and Kosut are absent.
Mlada Boleslav – Johana, Opiela, Fabian, Synek, and Mares are absent.
Marila Pribram – Tarczal is absent.
Bohemians 1905 – Nikl is absent.
Hradec Kralove – Klapka, Rezek, Fischer, and Cerny are absent.

Danish Superligaen:

Midtylland – Albaek, Salami, and Bak Nielsen are absent.
OB Odense – Djemba-Djemba, Mendy, and Ruud are absent. Reginussen returns.
SonderjyskE – O’Brien returns.
Silkeborg – Bech, Svensson, and Holst are absent. Hansen returns.
Lyngby – No absentees.
FC Copenhagen – No absentees.
Brondby – Bernburg is absent.
Nordsjaelland – Bjelland, Bechmann, Sise, Lawan, Granskov, and D.Jensen are absent.

German Bundesliga:

Kaiserslautern – Knaller and Kouemaha are absent.
Schalke 04 – Hoewedes, Unnerstall, and Faehrmann are absent.
Hannover 96 – Diouf, Pogatetz, and Andreassen are absent.
Koln – Chihi, Uth, Podolski, and Jajalo are absent.

Greek Super League:

Levadiakos – Lisgaras is absent.
Atromitos – Tomas is absent. Squad rotation is expected ahead of an important cup game.
Xanthi – Dani is absent.
PAS Giannina – Patsasoglou, Lila, Ionnaou, Tambasis, De Vicenti, and Oikonomou are absent.
Panionios – Skembri, Petkakis, and Aulonitis are absent.
Doxa Dramas – Soiledis, Geladaris, Lima, Vanderson, Seremet, and Papadopoulos are absent.
Panaitolikos – No absentees.
PAOK Salonika – No absentees.
Panathinaikos – Boumsong and Leto are absent.
Olympiakos Piraeus – Torosidis is absent. Ibagaza is a doubt.

Israeli Ligat Ha’al:

Hapoel Tel-Aviv – Igiebor, Tamuz, Hotba, Fransman, Toama, and Yadin are absent. Kende is a doubt. Crowd will be women and children only.
Hapoel Kiryat Shmona – Ben-Zaken is absent. Tibi and Badash return. Ben-Shimon is leaving at the end of the season, which has created a stir in the dressing room.

Italian Serie A:

Atalanta Bergamo – Brighi, Capelli, Denis, Lucchini, and Peluso are absent. Raimondi, Stendardo, and Tiribocchi are doubts.
Bologna – Casarini, Loria, Garics, and Gimenez are absent. Cherubin is a doubt.
Cagliari – Dessena, El-Kabir, Eriksson are absent. Rui Sampaio is a doubt.
Catania – Biagianti, Campagnolo, Motta, Potenza are absent.
Cesena – Ceccarelli, Guana, Martinez, Pudil, and Von Bergen are absent. Iaquinta is a doubt.
Chievo Verona – Gulan, Sardo are absent. Morero is a doubt.
Internazionale – Alvarez, Stankovic, Guarin, Chivu, and Sneijder are absent.
Lazio – Garrido, Gonzalez, Matuzalem, Lulic, and Stankevicius are absent. Rocchi, Brocchi, Konko, and Cana are doubts.
Lecce – Carrozzieri, Grossmuller, and Julio Sergio are absent. Ofere and Cuadrado are doubts.
SSC Napoli – Donadel and Maggio are absent.
Novara – Ludi, Marianini are absent.
Palermo – Bacinovic, Barreto, Miccoli, Silvestre, and Pisano are absent.
Siena – Bolzoni, Brkic, Calaio, Contini, and D’Agostino are absent.
Udinese – Badu, Isla, Basta, and Benatia are absent.

Lithuanian A Lyga:

Siauliai – No absentees. Sendzikas, Snapkauskas, and Zukauskas may debutise.
Kruoja Pakruojis – Slavickas and Zigalovas are absent.
Dainava – No news. Game played in Marijampole.
Banga Gargzdai – Bitinas and Ivanauskas are absent.

Dutch Eredivisie:

Twente Enschede – Rendla, Landzaat, Teixeira, Wisgerhof, Rosales, and Verhoek are absent.
Feyenoord Rotterdam – Torres, G.Fernandez, Ramsteijn, Nelom, Cisse, and Bakkal are absent. El Ahmadi is a doubt.
ADO Den Haag – Ammi, Vicento, N’Toko, Supusepa, van Duinen, Mulders, and Leeuwin are absent.
AFC Ajax Amsterdam – van der Wiel, Sigthorsson, Sulejmani, and Boilesen are absent.
FC Utrecht – Bulthuis, Demouge, Mulenga, de Kogel, Nilsson, and van Dijk are absent.
Groningen – van Loo, Johansson, Kwakman, van de Laak, Kieftenbeld, and Enevoldsen are absent.
PSV Eindhoven – Tamata, Isaksson, Engelaar, Manolev, and Labyad are absent.
Heerenveen – Steppe is absent.
AZ Alkmaar – Benschop, Johansson, Moisander are absent. Beerens and Martens are doubts.
NAC Breda – Gudelj and van Fessem are absent.

Polish Ekstraklasa:

Slask Wroclaw – Fojut, Stevanovic, and Wasiluk are absent. A private call between boss Lenczyk and chairman Dutkiewicz was leaked in which boss Lenczyk criticies a few choice players with harsh words. Lenczyk has since said that the issues in the dressing room are resolved.
Cracovia Krakow – Radomski, Visnakovs, and Sucorov are absent. Nitbazonika is a doubt.
Ruch Chorzow – Jankowski and Zienczuk are absent.
Podbeskidzie Bielsko-Biala – Rogalski is absent. Cohen and Nather return.

Portuguese Liga Sagres:

Academica de Coimbra – Cabral, Habib, Orlando, and Gomes are absent. Abdoulaye returns.
Pacos de Ferreira – Tony, Coherne, Manuel Jose, Ricardo, and Mitchel are absent. Only 16 players available.
Vitoria Setubal – Ze Pedro and Goncalves are absent. Ricardo Silva and Meyong return.
Maritimo Funchal – Felicio and Rossi are absent. Diogo and Roberge return.
Vitoria Guimaraes – Joao Paulo, Molina, Amorim, and El Adoua are absent. Freire and Mendes return.
Olhanense – Andre Micael, Nuno Piloto, and Luis Filipe are absent. Vinha and Jader return.

Romanian Liga:

Steaua Bucharest – Gardos, Prepelita, and Martinovic are absent. First game back at Ghencea after a year’s absence – sellout crowd.
Astra Ploiesti – Matel and Fatai are absent.
FC Brasov – Bruno Madeira is absent.
Otelul Galati – Ilie and Perendija are absent.

Russian Premier League:

Kuban’ Krasnodar – No absentees.
Rubin Kazan – Eremenko and Eduardo are absent.
Lokomotiv Moscow – Markes and Belyaev are absent.
Anzhi Makhachkala – No absentees.
Amkar’ Perm – Popov, Smirnov, and Cherechnikov are absent.
Tom’ Tomsk – Ivanov, Smirnov, Stroev, Bazhenov, and Balyaikin are absent.
Krylya Sovetov Samara – Grigoryan and Jozef-Rennett are absent.
Spartak Nal’chik – Sheriev, Berhamov, and Chebotar are absent.

Slovenian Prva Liga:

Triglav – No news.
Olimpija Ljubljana – Djermanovic and Ranic are absent. Omladic and Lovrecic return.

Spanish Primera Liga:

Levante – No news.
Villarreal CF – Catala, Rossi, Cani, and Borja Valero are absent. Oriol returns.
Real Mallorca – Pina and Tissone return.
Atletico Madrid – Diego and Antonio Lopez are absent. Filipe Luis and Merida return.
Athletic Club de Bilbao – Ocio, Castillo, Toquero, Amorebieta, and Gurpegi are absent. Llorente is a doubt.
Valencia CF – Costa, Canales, and Pereira are absent. Soldado returns.
Real Madrid – Di Maria, Albiol, Varane, Altintop, and Coentrao are absent.
Malaga – Ruben, Portillo, Juanmi, Baptista, and Toulalan are absent. Maresca and Sanchez return.

Spanish Segunda Liga:

Real Valladolid – Mauncho and Hernandez are absent.
Almeria – Garcia is absent.
Barcelona II – Tello, Sanchez, Mino, Muniesa, and Lobato are absent.
Alcorcon – Miguelez is absent.

Turkish Super Lig:

Mersin Idmanyurdu – Erman is absent.
Istanbul BB – Vinicius and Hasagic are absent.
Gaziantepspor – Binya is absent.
Karabukspor – Senol is absent.
Kayserispor – Cangele and Aydilek are absent.
Samsunspor – Ceylan, Teber, and Boral are absent.