2-2 coming out of asia fer the day, up a little.
Europa:
CSKA/Crvena - no analysis. no stats. NOTHING. most of the time when I see at/near even money on this kind of line I make a small play on it. and in futbol, as we all witnessed yesterday, one errant pass or one stupid foul can turn a match upside down. and since 1st leg was scoreless, a goal by either & strategy goes out the window.
CSKA/Crvena over 2 @+102
First of all, i hope the Ukranians kick their butts & if uve been reading my threads youd know my love for Roma is non-existant.
UEFA CL:when Shakhtar played Napoli the line closed @+275-ish. now, after a 2 month break with hardly any competitive matches they're in the 150's vs Roma??? LOL.
Shakhtar/Roma - this should be simple to break-down. Shakhtar have an impressive home record in CL thru the years but Im mindful of some of their wins; and they are the polar opposite when on the road. So, Im keeping this in mind when making this play; I personally think they practically MUST win here to have any chance of advancing. this squads MO is the high-press, attack attack attack when at home. but "needing" and "doing" are two entirely different things. as a few friends were discussing, Napoli ran with them & plays a style which fits Shakhtar like a glove; but Roma will NOT run with them tonight. the team is finally fully healthy/available after several months; and with the 2nd leg at home you can bet ur last cannoli DiFrancesco is gonna play it conservatively; hes gonna start with the 4-2-3-1 formation with Dzeko up front.
Roma had won the ball possession in every single Group stage match; and people forgetting this is a team that came back from an 0-2 deficit in Stamford Bridge & actually took the lead.
when going thru the matchups the one thing which sticks out at me like a sore thumb is this: Nainggolan. as much as I cant stand this guy, i dont think Shakhtar has played anyone like him. hes not the best of midfielders and isnt gonna win any Humanitarian awards in this lifetime, but when youre going up against a team that high presses; hes the kind of guy you want in the middle of ur field. hardly ever turns the ball over and will knock his own mother down if she is in the way.
speaking of Dzeko, one thing which must be taken note of is the HUGE height advantage Roma has tonight; free kicks & corners could be the difference here. the thing with Roma, even tho their defense is somewhat stingy this year, in the CL I cannot remember the last time they clean-sheeted anybody on the road. (its been a while)----and it sure as h*ll isnt going to happen here. though i fear the draw.... my buddies and I fear Shakhtars high press just might backfire on them here. just gotta go with this option.
BTTS + over 2.5 @+130
Sevilla/ManU - never a fan of Montella, and this team has dropped off a few notches since Mr Hyper-Active left (Sampaoli). Sevilla has scored 2+ in 6 or their past 7 UCL home matches (and had also conceded in 5 of those too); so that gives a pretty good indication of their MO. have a feeling ManU gonna park it but dont think it will matter here; Liverpool exposed these Spaniards in group stages and as much of an over-thinker he is, Mou will want that away goal. this is a nice price given the circumstances:
Sevilla/ManU over 2.5 @+120
Concacaf: just keep following the Mexican trail.
Club America to win @+140
Saprissa/America over 2.5 @+132
Montagua/Tijuana over 2.5 @-105
GL to all