Are we expecting a goal-fest? Prediction for Viktoria Plzen vs Polissya
Viktoria Plzen
Polissya
One of the many friendlies this week will take place on Tuesday on neutral ground in Austria, where Czech side Viktoria Plzen will face off against Polissya Zhytomyr. I'm backing a bet on goals in this encounter.
Viktoria Plzen
Viktoria Plzen had a disappointing season last year, finishing only third in the Czech First League standings. On the bright side, the team picked up steam towards the end, winning four out of their last six matches.
However, due to a poor start, those points weren't enough to challenge not only the future champions Slavia, who pulled 17 points clear, but also runners-up Sparta Prague, who finished 13 points ahead of Viktoria.
As part of their preseason, the club played four friendlies, managing a win only against Artis Brno. They drew with Spartak Trnava and Copenhagen, and recently suffered a 3-5 defeat to Young Boys.
Polissya
The Zhytomyr club enjoyed a stellar season, finishing third and edging out Ukrainian Premier League giants Dynamo Kyiv by two points. Had Polissya been a bit luckier in the final rounds, they might have even claimed silver. They fell just one point short of LNZ.
It's worth noting that Polissya are taking their preseason seriously, already playing six friendlies since late June. During this stretch, the "Polissya Wolves" lost only to Universitatea Craiova (3-4), while notching wins over Azerbaijani champions Sabah (4-1), Bulgarian side CSKA Sofia (4-0), and Austria's Tirol (2-1).
Interesting facts and head-to-head
- These teams have never faced each other before
- In five of Polissya's last six matches, the "over 2.5 goals" bet has landed
- In Viktoria Plzen's last four matches, both teams have scored
Prediction
Polissya are looking sharp in preseason and arguably come into this clash as slight favorites. We expect another high-scoring affair here and are backing the "both teams to score" bet at odds of 1.66.
