Porto wants to take a big step towards booking a knockout stage ticket for the Europa League on Thursday evening and welcomes Nice to the Estadio do Dragao.
Enjoying what has become a long period of excitement either side of the November international break, the Dragons have their sights firmly set on building a real European attack this season and will smell the opportunity to set a real milestone here.
At the heart of what has quickly become a major crisis, Nice has rightly come under enormous scrutiny over the past month and Thursday’s guests should brace themselves for new tough scrutiny on foreign soil.
Ahead of what could be a crucial Europa League showdown on Thursday evening, we took a look at some of the most attractive betting tips between Porto and Nice.
A golden opportunity for Porto
Porto collected just one point from one of their two previous Europa League appearances and have plenty of pressure on their shoulders when they return to the Estadio do Dragao in midweek.
Nevertheless, Francesco Farioli’s men are still considered a standout contender to claim a knockout stage ticket this season and continued to shine either side of the November international break.
Building on their Taco de Portugal adventure last weekend, when they marked their return from the two-week break in November with a 3-0 win against Sintrense, Porto have won four of their previous five matches on all fronts.
Likewise, the Portuguese icons have suffered just a pair of defeats in one of their first seventeen appearances in all competitions, and are rightly pegged as a standout contender here.
While they started their Europa League adventure with back-to-back wins against Salzburg and Red Star, Porto have remarkably tasted just one defeat in front of their own supporters since January.
Bet Builder Tip: Porto wins @ 4/9 of 1xInset
Nice’s public nightmare
Nice were completely overwhelmed at the weekend as they marked their respective returns from the November international break with a 5-1 thumping on home ground against home foes Marseille, and now find themselves at the heart of a public nightmare.
Heading into the fortnight’s break with a 2-1 defeat away at Metz, Thursday’s guests have lost each of their previous four outings across all formats by an aggregate score of 11-3.
Coming under even more scrutiny earlier this month when they lost 3-1 to German side Freiburg, the pressure on Franck Haise’s shoulders is now at a boiling point.
While they started their European campaign with a 2-1 defeat to Italian icons Roma on September 24, Les Aiglons have lost all their first four Europa League clashes by an aggregate score of 9-4.
Facing what will be another round of tight scrutiny when they travel to Portugal on Thursday evening, it should also be highlighted that Nice have failed to keep a single clean sheet at the Allianz Riviera since mid-January.
Bet Builder Tip: Antoine Mendy is shown a card on 11/4 BetUS
Sainz could play a leading role
Last season he finished as Norwich’s top scorer after 18 goals in the Championship. During the summer it was reported that Borja Sainz was attracting a lot of interest from the entire European elite.
However, putting pen to paper on a five-year deal with the Portuguese giants in July, the 24-year-old certainly made an immediate impact at the Estadio do Dragao.
Sainz found the net again on duty at Raca de Portugal this weekend and has now got on the scoresheet in three of his previous four appearances in all competitions either side of the fortnight break in November.
Opening his Europa League account with Dutch side Utrecht earlier this month, the former Spanish youth international believes his stock is at a red-hot peak and will look to make another statement here.
The former Alaves youngster has met a leaky Nice defense, who have recorded just one clean sheet in their travels so far this calendar year, and has also bagged back-to-back strikes on home soil.
Bet Builder Tip: Borja Sainz over 0.5 shots on target @ 3/5 with Dachbet
Porto vs Nice Bet Builder Tips
- Porto wins
- Antoine Mendy gets a card
- Borja Sainz more than 0.5 shots on target
ODDS – 7/1 met Vegas land
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