FENERBAHCE v ZENIT
Europa League
Tuesday 12th February 2019
Kickoff: 1755hrs
Pick: Fenerbahce AH0
Bookmaker: Bet Victor
Odds: 1.79 (odds taken at 00:17 GMT, 12 Feb 2019)
European action returns to the football calendar on Tuesday night as the Europa League enters the knock-out phase of the competition with the first fixture being a first leg clash between Turkish side Fenerbahce and Russian club, Zenit, as the betting tips continue.
Europa League Betting at Bet Victor
Fenerbahce Prediction
Fenerbahce enter this important round of 16 first leg at their Ülker Stadyumu Fenerbahçe ?ükrü Saraco?lu Spor Kompleksi in Istanbul on the back of a 1-0 loss away at Kayserispor in the Turkish Super Lig, but they return to home turf for this clash.
Fenerbahce remained unbeaten at home during the group stages as they finished with a home record of 2-1-0 4/0 which included wins against Spartak Trnava and Anderlecht who both finished below them in Group D.
The hosts’ best chances of progressing through to the quarter-finals definitely seem to rest upon how they do at home in this first leg, and this has stood them in good stead in previous Europa League campaigns as they’ve lost just once in their last 14 matches at home in this competition.
Forwards Ayew (5 goals) and Frey (3 goals) represent Fenerbahce’s best chances of scoring at home in this first leg encounter.
- Fenerbahce have lost just 1 of their last 14 home matches in the Europa League
- Zenit have lost 5 of their last 7 away matches in the Europa League
- This is the first encounter between Fenerbahce and Zenit
Zenit Prediction
Zenit have been involved in a number of club friendlies in recent weeks as the Russian domestic season has been temporarily put on hold due to the scheduled winter break which saw the first half of the Premier League season halted in mid-December.
As the second half of the Russian top flight season doesn’t recommence until the start of March, Zenit have played six friendlies which have resulted in defeats at home to Lokomotiv Moscow and Spartak Moscow but they’ve bounced back in their subsequent matches with away wins gained at Rostov 5-0, Elche 2-0 and 2-1 at Sarpsborg, along with a 0-0 draw at home with Luxembourg outfit F91 Dudelange.
In the Europa League, Zenit have suffered just two defeats from their last nine matches overall in the competition which were losses away at Molde and Slavia Prague – the latter being inflicted upon them in the group stages of this year’s competition in Group C.
Zenit will undoubtedly look to nullify their hosts’ threat in Turkey in this first leg and hope the scores are level upon their return to Russia for the second leg, but five defeats from their last seven matches on their travels at this level suggests they could be in for a tough 90 minutes in Istanbul.
Indeed, Zenit have managed just one away win from their last nine outings in this competition.
Betting Tips Verdict
Fenerbahce have been extremely solid on home turf in the Europa League and they should at least avoid defeat to Zenit, but don’t be surprised if the hosts nick a lead here.
