Romanian League
2011-07-22 - CS Mioveni vs Universitatea Cluj
A Sports Betting Pick by ROzsolt
Football: Romania: Liga 1
Venue: Stadion Orasenesc, Mioveni
Friday 22th July - Kickoff time: 22:00 GMT+2
CS Mioveni
This is only the second season in the first league in CS Mioveni's short history (founded in 2000), not being able to survive in the 2007-2008 season after a surprising promotion. They have another shot now, but they are still among the "favorites" to be relegated at the end of this season.
Mioveni is using the same strategy that every newly-promoted team uses and that is transferring 30+ players with lots of experience in the first league. So, we will see players like Adrian Neaga (ex-Steaua, 45 goals in Liga 1), Nicolae Dica (ex-Steaua, 14 goals in European competitions) and many others like them.
I am not sure this is a good option, because for many of these players this is their last contract as professionals, so naturally they are not in their best shape. Some of these players can decide a match on their own, but on long term, I think they have slim chances to survive this season.
Universitatea Cluj
Universitatea had finally managed to remain in the first division after they promoted in 2010, after some disappointing years when they rollercoasted between the first and third leagues.
Universitatea struggled in the first part of last season, but then made a nice comeback and finished the season 8th, right above their city rivals, CFR Cluj.
The Universitatea Cluj objective is to reach an European spot at the end of the season and looking at their squad they have all the premises to do so. Their stadium will be finished in a few weeks and that will be a huge advantage as it is well known that "U" has a one of the most loyal fan bases in Romania.
Universitatea did well in the preparation games, playing 7 games and winning 5 of them. The opposition was rather poor, but they did beat Gaziantep from Turkish Superlig with 3-0.
The betting verdict
In their first season in Liga 1, Mioveni had an awful start, only collecting 6 points from the first 10 games. I think that their run in the current season will be quite similar, even though they have a manager with a lot of experience who has only trained teams that were fighting to avoid relegation.
Universitatea is the favorite on paper, having the better squad and they should perform better, however, it's always difficult to call a game like this, in the first stage of the competition.
I think the value is on the away win, even though I expect a narrow win.
The Pick :
CS Mioveni 0-1 Universitatea Cluj
BEST BETTING TIP :
Take Universitatea Cluj to win at 2.40 LadbrokesConfidence: 6/10
