Europa League
2013-02-14 - Zenit St. Petersburg vs Liverpool
A Sports Betting Pick by Addicted
Football : Europe : Europa League
Thursday, 14th February 2013 - Kickoff 5:00pm GMT
BETTING PREVIEW
Early kickoff in Russia, and Liverpool will be looking to do what no other English team has ever done - beat Zenit in St. Petersburg. The home side are in the middle of their winter break, but their strong home form means I will look to oppose Liverpool in this one.
Liverpool crashed to a humiliating 2-0 loss at home, beaten by West Brom on the weekend to give them the worst warm up for this tough game away from home. It's going to be freezing, and they're going to have a nasty reception at a venue that has been in the news for racist fans, and then of course there is the quality of opposition, which is high.
Zenit last played a competitive game in December, when they held Anzhi to a 1-1 draw. Zenit do not get beaten at home often, and have never lost at home to English opposition. They were unfortunate to crash out of the Champions League, finishing just 1 point short to miss out, and now here they are in the Europa League. Still, just 1 loss in their last 19 home games means Liverpool are looking at an impossible task.
Liverpool have shown serious defensive frailties, blowing a 2-0 lead at Arsenal in a matter of minutes and being quite fortunate to not get beaten. Following that they allowed 2 goals at Manchester City in another draw and of course were blanked at home, allowing 2 goals once again against West Brom. And before all 3 of these shoddy results let's not forget this team's performance at Oldham, where they were dumped out of the FA Cup in a 3-2 finish.
I don't think they're going to be able to live with the 3rd best side in Russia. Too many defensive problems mean they are likely to concede 2 goals and I feel that may be enough to hand the Russians the win. Keep an eye out for Portuguese player Danny, who is one of the most expensive signings in Russian transfer history, and has netted against Malaga and Milan in the Champions League this season.
THE BETTING VERDICT
We're getting a better price on the home team total than the win, so I shall go against Liverpools defence in this one.
The Pick :
Zenit St. Petersburg 2-1 Liverpool
BEST BETTING TIP :
Bet on Zenit St. Petersburg Team Total - Over 1.5 goals @ 2.62 (Coral)
