APOEL vs. Botev Plovdiv Prediction, Tips & Odds – Jul. 28, 2022 19:00 CET
Botev Plovdiv has been playing disastrously in the last couple of weeks, and now they face their toughest match so far.
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APOEL
Between 2007 and 2019, APOEL won ten titles in the Cypriot League. However, in the last few years they have lost their dominance. They didn’t even play in Europe last season, and the year before that APOEL were eliminated by Slovan Liberec in the Europa League playoffs. Now, they will try with good coefficient to reach the Conference League group stage.
If they defeat Botev Plovdiv, APOEL will most likely play against Osijek in the third round of the Conference League qualifying. It’s a pretty solid draw and if that tie happens, the Cypriot club will be the favorite. In the first game against Botev last week, APOEL was better but they failed to score a goal and it remained 0:0. Now, with the help of home crowd, they will surely be even more dangerous.
APOEL changed a lot of players during this summer. Some familiar names like Vid Belec, Jose Angel Crespo, Lucas Villafanez, Danny Blum and Georgi Kostadinov have arrived. With these players, APOEL will be the first favorite to win the title in Cyprus. Of course, the big desire is to reach the Conference League group stage as well.
Botev Plovdiv
Botev Plovdiv made one of their best results in 21st century last season. They finished third in the Bulgarian League, which secured them a spot in the Conference League qualifying. Unfortunately for them, they started new season disastrously and it could hardly be worse than what they have shown so far.
In first three rounds of domestic championship, they recorded three defeats. The problem is that they lost to teams that should be fighting to avoid relegation. In Plovdiv, they were defeated by Arda and Hebar, while they also lost in Vratsa. The only positive outcome was in the first game against APOEL, which ended 0:0, even though they were outplayed there as well.
Already, head coach Azrudin Valentic is under enormous pressure. If things don’t improve in the next couple of games, it’s almost certain that he will be fired. If they made a sensation and beat APOEL, then he would definitely buy some more time. However, the fact is that atmosphere within this team is not good, and such things are very difficult to change in short period of time.
H2H
APOEL and Botev Plovdiv played against each other only last week when it was 0:0 in Bulgaria.
Injuries
Striker Giorgi Kvilitaia is injured and won’t play for APOEL in this game. Botev captain Todor Nedelev is out due to head injury, while Stanislav Rabotov had knee surgery.
Prediction
This bet carries one small risk. APOEL is a team that plays mostly defensively, but Botev is such a bad team at the moment that it is hard to imagine them avoiding defeat in Nicosia. If APOEL settle with a one-goal win, this bet will be void.
Date and Time: 28.07.2022 19:00 CET
Pick: APOEL -1 (AH)
Odds: 1.88
Bookmaker: Bet365
