You know what this means right? Your favourite teams are beginning to polish up before the season gets started. New look players and jerseys at the ready with only the countdown to go!
You know what this means right? Your favourite teams are beginning to polish up before the season gets started. New look players and jerseys at the ready with only the countdown to go!
I’ve picked out a couple friendly games for your attention – hopefully we are able to start growing those coffers.
Friday 8 July
Nurnberg vs Arsenal (17:30)
Nurnberg’s third friendly during the off-season sees them meet Arsenal – who play their first friendly. I suspect Mikel Arteta will take these friendly encounters quite seriously, they will provide an opportunity to continue developing his system and more importantly, smooth out whatever niggles there may be going into the season this year.
However, given its their first game back I don’t think Arsenal are going to be razor sharp…and that provides an opportunity! Back the home win/draw double chance.
Saturday 9 July
Salzburg vs Feyenoord (14:30)
Salzburg are the better side in my opinion, I would go as far as to suggest they are a more complete side. Feyenoord have lost some important players in this window and so these friendly games might become more of a requirement than a ticking the box exercise.
Salzburg often are found lacking defensively though and so both teams scoring seems the banker here.
Arminia Bielefeld vs PSV (15:30)
This should be a relatively evenly matched fixture. The data on these sides are limited, but what is clear is the propensity for PSV to grind out positive results in various situations.
They are yet to go down to any side they have met in the ‘friendly run’ and I’m not sure the hosts have the firepower to change this. Neither side have been involved in a fixture that has seen less than three goals scored during this off-season period and so PSV on the double chance and over 2.5 goals seem the logical bet!
Besiktas vs Werder Bremen (16:00)
Besiktas has not played a competitive game of football since May 15th. This will be their first and as such mark the beginning of their preparation for their domestic season.
Werder Bremen, on the other hand, have had a mixed bag of recent results and they don’t exactly give much confidence coming into this game. Nevertheless, for Besiktas, this will be a matter of removing rust and so I can’t get behind them to get a result. Get behind the visitors.
Dynamo Dresden vs Borussia Dortmund (17:00)
Dortmund is another side who begin their pre-season fixtures on Saturday, they haven’t played a fixture since early May and so once again I think it’s a matter of shaking off the rust and finding game fitness again.
For Dresden though, they have played a handful of early games with not much to then run home about. I think the quality of Dortmund comes through – even amidst a shakeup in their squad and some holiday hassles.
Sturm Graz vs Galatasaray (19:30)
The hosts continue their preseason preparation whilst Galatasaray only now get the ball rolling. I know that the narrative I have created suggests that I favour the side who are closer to match fitness and chemistry – but I think the gap in quality between these two sides is too big to ignore.
Get behind the visitors here – but I would do so tentatively.
Sunday 10 July
Fenerbahce vs Hull City (20:30)
Fenerbahce have seemingly enjoyed their football during this off season. They are scoring for fun and from a coaching perspective, the ‘feel good’ narrative which often accompanies such performances can never be underestimated.
Hull City were run ragged at the end of their season, so I suspect a clean slate is what they seek – I just don’t think they win here though. Fenerbahce is the pick for me.
Tuesday 12 July
26/10 Manchester United | Draw 5/2 | Liverpool 17/20 (15:00)
These two sides have had incredibly different seasons, and yet – at the risk of getting a reaction from the peanut gallery quite early on – I think their intentions this year are similar, but at different levels.
They both looks to restructure a little and ensure they are closer to the title – simple as that…and yes, I’ll say it again, at different levels. Liverpool at this point have a more complete squad though and I don’t suspect there are any wholesale changes to the way Jurgen Klopp wants his side to approach games – therefore I think the Reds deserve your punditry here.
