Football Tips: Thursday night’s 27/1 European Football Bet Builder

European football tipster, Paddy Murphy, has found six value picks from Thursday night’s Europa League and La Liga fixtures. 

He’s got five matches featuring Ajax, Atletico Madrid, Lyon, Eintracht Frankfurt, and Roma v Athletic Bilbao. So, let’s get into his picks.

*All games kickoff at 20:00

Ajax v Besiktas – Both teams to score & over 2.5 goals
Eintracht Frankfurt v Plzen – Eintracht Frankfurt -1
Roma v Athletic Bilbao – Both teams to score, Athletic Bilbao & draw
Lyon v Olympiakos – Olympiakos & draw
Celta Vigo v Atletico Madrid – Both teams to score

Ajax v Besiktas – Both teams to score & over 2.5 goals

Europa League match at the Johan Cruijff Arena, Amsterdam
TV: TNT Sports

Francesco Farioli’s success at Nice last season, where his side lost just 10 Ligue Un games, had many a head turning over the summer. Ajax were quick to swoop for the Italian, though, and after last season’s mess, which saw them finishing a lowly fifth, the Amsterdam club are definitely enjoying a ‘new-manager bounce’ at the moment.

Since taking over, he’s seen his side win seven of their 10 games, draw one, and lose two. Over their five home fixtures this campaign, they’ve won four and drawn one, winning one on penalties, scoring 10, and conceding just one.

Besiktas’ manager, Giovanni van Bronckhorst, a former Feyenoord player, will relish the chance to get one over his old rivals. The Turkish side are in good shape, too. They’ve won six and drawn two of their eight games this season, scoring at least two goals in seven of those matches.

They’re a bit porous at the back, however. They’ve leaked eight goals over those eight games. Will Besiktas score against a stingy Amsterdam defence? Well, they’ve banged in 11 goals over their four away games this season. With those records, we should see both scoring and at least a third goal going in, too.

Eintracht Frankfurt v Plzen – Eintracht Frankfurt -1

Europa League match at Deutsche Bank Park, Frankfurt
TV: TNT Sports

Eintracht Frankfurt have won four and lost one of its five competitive games this season. The Eagles have scored a healthy 11 goals while conceding five. The Eagles are always very strong at home and have lost just two of their last 10 games there.

Their Europa League record is also incredibly good. They didn’t lose a single game in their run to the 2022 final against Ranger in Seville.

Viktoria Plzen are third in the Czech league after eight games. They’re a decent outfit, but they don’t score many goals. They’ve won three, drawn one, and lost one over their last five fixtures but only scored five goals. Away from home, they can boast the same results, scoring seven goals and conceding five.

The gulf in class should be pretty evident here. Frankfurt manager Dino Toppmoller might be tempted to tinker with his starting XI but he’ll also be well aware that he doesn’t want to upset a winning formula that has delivered so far. The host should win this at a canter, we’re taking them in the -1 Handicap market.

Roma v Athletic Bilbao – Both teams to score, Athletic & draw

Europa League match at the Stadio Olimpico, Rome
TV: TNT Sports

Was it the correct call to sack Roma legend Daniele De Rossi? Probably not, but the suits got what they wanted when Roma took Udinese apart in a 3-0 victory in Ivan Juric’s first match in charge of the Romans on Sunday evening. That was their first win of the season; they’d previously drawn three and lost one.

Athletic Bilbao began the season with a draw and a loss but has since won four of their following five fixtures. They lost the other one but scored nine and conceded four over those five games.

Rome were incredibly good at home last season in Europe. Of their 14 home fixtures, they won 11, plus one more via penalties, and scored at least two goals in 10 of those 14 matches.

Bilbao have scored in all but one of their games this season and have scored six in their three away games. Both Teams to Score is the smart bet here.

The Spanish side are in the superior form too, and while Roma did look good against Udinese, it was still just Udinese. Bilbao are going to be a far trickier side to try to contain and with them scoring plenty of late, we reckon they could edge it. But let’s take the insurance of it ending level too.

Lyon v Olympiakos – Olympiakos & draw

Europa League match at the Groupama Stadium, Nice
TV: TNT Sports

Lyon have won a grand total of one of their five games this season, drawing one and losing three, scoring six goals but four of those came in their 4-3 win over Strasbourg. Of their three home games, they’ve won one and lost two, scoring six and conceding eight.

Olympiakos have won three, drawn one, and lost one of their five games thus far, scoring eight and conceding three. Of their three away games, they’ve won two and lost one, scoring six and conceding two.

Lyon are in bad shape and they don’t look like they’ve going to end their slump here, Olympiakos in the Double Chance market has the value.

Celta Vigo v Atletico Madrid – Both teams to score

La Liga match at the Estadio Abanca-Balaidos, Vigo
TV: Premier Sports, LaLiga TV

To La Liga to finish off our Acca where unbeaten Atletico Madrid travel to Celta Vigo. The away side have won three and drawn three so far in the league while on the road have won one and drawn two, scoring four and conceding three.

Celta have won three and lost three in the league since festivities began. At home, they’ve won all three of their matches, scoring eight and conceding three.

Were this a home game for Diego Simeone’s side, we’d be more than happy to go with them but Celta are banging in the goals, 14 over their six La Liga games, so should be getting on the scoresheet. The hosts have conceded 13 over those six games as well so Atletico should also be getting at least one.

Thursday’s Bet Builder tips

Ajax v Besiktas – Both teams to score & over 2.5 goals
Eintracht Frankfurt v Plzen – Eintracht Frankfurt -1
Roma v Athletic Bilbao – Both teams to score, Athletic Bilbao & draw
Lyon v Olympiakos – Olympiakos & draw
Celta Vigo v Atletico Madrid – Both teams to score

*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.

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