The upcoming weekend shows a lot of promise for football fans, but action ramps up slowly on Friday. Only four important matches are scheduled on this day, as German, Spanish and English teams chase valuable points. Villarreal welcome Betis in the last match of the day, while action starts a little bit sooner in the Bundesliga and the Championship.
Villarreal Try to Stay Invincible at Home in La Liga
Villarreal suffered a narrow margin defeat at the hands of Barcelona midweek, but they put up quite a fight and were on the verge of salvaging the point. Now they have home pitch advantage against a team that is notoriously bad at playing on the road. This should provide the hosts with an excellent opportunity of extending their invincibility in front of their fans while claiming three precious points. The odds on their victory currently stand at 1/1 at bet365 Sports, but we expect them to drop as kickoff draws near. On the other hand, Betis are priced at 27/10 and the same value is offered on the match to result in a draw
Union Berlin Hope for another Major Bundesliga Upset
Union Berlin have caused the first major upset of the season in the German Bundesliga after defeating Dortmund at home. They were able to score 3 goals against one of the main favorites to lift the trophy, but since then, they sank into near irrelevance. They will try to reignite their hopes of avoiding relegation in a very difficult match against Frankfurt. Home pitch advantage is massive for this team, but Berlin play against a vastly superior opponent, hence the odds of 2/1 on them to win. 888 Sport is more confident in the visitors who are priced at 13/10, but we also like the odds of 27/10 offered on an undecided match.
Fulham and Stoke Resume their Premier League Qualification Bid
Fulham were unable to cling to their Premier League spot and are back in the Championship, hoping to qualify at the end of the season. So far things are not going to well for the team sitting at the middle of the standings, but they could take a turn for the better on Friday. At 8 PM UK time they play at home against Wigan and Winner Sports offers odds of 1/2 on them to secure all three points.
Stoke are another team that used to play in the Premier League, but unlike Fulham, they look less likely to return to the elite of English football this season. On Friday, however, they have the first chance against Nottingham Forest, as reflected by the odds of 13/10. The hosts are slight favorites, but we favor the visitors at 23/10, as they are yet to lose a match away from home this season.