Friday Derbies Set the Stage for Busy Weekend in European Football
Published January 25, 2019 by Florin P
The runners-up in major European football leagues play potentially decisive matches on Friday evening against stringy opponents.
Only three matches are scheduled on Friday evening in the major European championships, but all are important football games. In the French first division, Marseille and Lille try to secure a place that will grant access to the Champion League groups. Hertha and Schalke have more reasonable expectations, as they simply try to return to the first half of the Bundesliga. Meanwhile, at the bottom of the Dutch Eredivisie, NAC Breda and ADO Den Haag try to avoid relegation.
Marseille and Lille Chase a Champion League Berth in Ligue 1
Marseille have home pitch advantage in the match scheduled at 7:45 PM UK time in the French Ligue 1. Their solid performance in front of their fans, doubled by the positive head to head record explains why Marseille are narrow favorites at bet365 Sports. The hosts are given odds of 13/10 to prevail, while the defensive-minded Lille are priced at 23/10, the same value offered for the match to end undecided.
Hertha and Schalke Resume the Surge to the top of the Bundesliga
In the German first flight, Hertha and Schalke are slowly, but steadily returning to form and their goal is to secure a Europa League place. None of them are currently on one of the eligible spots, which means that the outcome of this match is particularly important. Starting at 7:30 PM UK time, Hertha will welcome their rivals in Berlin for a match that looks like a perfect quality. 888 Sport offers identical odds on the home side and the visitors to prevail, while pricing the not so unlikely draw at 23/10.
Things Heat Up at the Bottom of the Dutch Eredivisie
Football fans from the Netherlands are anxiously waiting for the weekend derbies and there is little interest for the match scheduled on Friday evening. Nevertheless, for the likes of NAC Breda and ADO Den Haag, this is an important game in the quest to avoid relegation. NAC Breda are winless on the road, but at home, they have won four out of nine matches and are narrow favorites tonight as well. Intertops offers odds of 7/5 on the home side to prevail, 2/1 on away victory and 12/5 on the teams to split points.
