Southampton take on HapoelBe’erSheva in their final Europa League Group Stage game knowing only a win will be enough to see them through to the next round.
The group is finely poised and following the 0-0 draw between the two sides in Israel a win or a goalscoring draw will be enough for Hapoel to claim second place in the group. The Israelis come into the game flying –eight wins on the spin in the league, 10 points clear at the top of the league and with 35 goals in their last 12 games.
They face a Southampton side who lost 3-0 to Crystal Palace at the weekend thanks to some poor goalkeeping, and whose form has been indifferent. However, their home form is good – one defeat in 11 games all season, and unbeaten at home in Europe this season. No Israeli side has beaten an English side in England in eight visits, and only one team – Maccabi Tel Aviv - have scored in the last five games.
Southampton aren’t going to want an end-to-end open game; with just 11 goals in their last 14 fixtures they’ve not exactly been prolific. A clean sheet guarantees passage through to the next stage; a Hapoel goal means they must win – and as such I would expect Southampton to hope their resolute defence (6 conceded in 11 home games) to do the job.
I think the Saints can largely hold out Hapoel, and as such am backing under 2.5 goals at 1.76. I’m not so sure on if they’ll beat able to beat the Israelis, and I’m going to have a speculative punt on the draw at 4.25.
Here is my record:
https://www.protipster.com/tipster/scorerthief
