TFT Issue 449!
FreeHowdy guys and girls!
Featured game
B36 Torshavn vs Linfield – lay Linfield at 4/5.
Today’s featured game is the UEFA Champions League game between B36 Torshavn and Linfield. The first leg ended 0-0 in Northern Ireland, which leaves this one rather finely-poised.
B36 have had a bit of an up-and-down season. I’m generally not very impressed with them but they do have good players, contrary to what their displays have suggested at times. Jakup A Borg is a very experienced forward and his strike partner Cieslewicz has been a top striker in the Faroe Islands for some time now. Together they form a lethal duo and Linfield can’t afford to underestimate that. The most influential player in the B36 ranks is Suni Olsen though, for my money. His free-kicks are legendary and the Northern Irish saw that in the first leg with one requiring a good save and the other just missing the post. Olsen is the most technically gifted player in B36’s team but with him there, the experience of Matras, and the movement of Jacobsen, I really feel that they can upset Linfield tonight. B36 did cause problems in spells of that game and they defended intelligently, which makes a nice change for them. That’s no surprise, though – they’ve welcomed back centre-back Faero from his studies in Scotland and it’s no coincidence that B36 kept a clean sheet in his first game back as playing alongside Danielsen makes B36 a lot more solid, which subsequently allows them to be a lot more confident going forward. This game is being played at Gundadalur, which is helpfully B36’s home ground so they do have a good advantage. The bouncy plastic turf is not not for away sides to play on, as Armenian outfit Gandzasar found out against EB/Streymur lately. Even Gomel struggled here against Vikingur Gotu, contrary to what the scoreline suggested. It’s not an easy place to play and I think the hosts are more than capable of causing Linfield a few problems today.
Linfield did quite well in the first leg of this tie. They managed to dominate overall but failed to convert that dominance due to a rather rusty display in front of goal. Their penalty was weak and easily saved as a result and other finishes just weren’t good enough. I mena, Joensen only had to make one outstanding save in the game, from what I’ve seen. Linfield have problems at the back in this game too – regular defender Watson is out, joining Murphy on the sidelines. Considering that captain Blayney isn’t 100% fit yet – it’s 50/50 as to whether he’ll be in goal tonight – this does cause a problem or two for Linfield. Linfield also miss attacking midfielder Lowry, which causes further problems for a rather rusty Linfield attack. I think Linfield are the better side here but there really isn’t that much in it, especially not when you take into account their absent players.
For me, there’s value in laying Linfield at 4/5. Bigger and better sides than the Northern Irish outfit have been felled in the Faroe Islands in recent times!
Verdict: Lay Linfield at 4/5