FC Astana vs Apoel Nicosia Prediction and Football Tips – 18/08/2015
Champions League football tips – FC Astana vs Apoel Nicosia prediction
FC Astana will be without joint top scorer Patrick Twumasi for this fixture after picking up a red card against HJK in their last qualification match. Tanat Nuserbayev has scored six goals in just ten starts this year, so he will be hoping to start the game. Nobody has played more minutes for them this year than Roger Cañas, so he will be looking to add to his six goals from midfield in order to see a Kazakh team through to the group stages for the first time ever.
Coach Domingos Paciência will be concerned as his team enter the latter stages of qualification. The departure of Rafik Djebbour, who scored fourteen goals last season, means that goals are scarce. The 4-1-4-1 formation has been their strongest, but with the suspension of defensive midfielder Vinicius, they could revert to a 4-2-3-1. De Vincenti must continue his good recent form in order to give them the firepower they need against an inform FC Astana team.
Possible Line-ups
FC Astana: 4-4-2 formation: Eric; Shomko, Postnikov, Aničić, Ilič; Kéthévoama, Cañas, Maksimović, Dzholchiev; Nuserbayev, Zhukov
Apoel Nicosia: 4-2-3-1 formation: Waterman; Sergio, Astiz, Carlão, Antoniades; Morais, Alexandrou; Vander, Makridis, De Vincenti; Leal
Statistics
- FC Astana have won 6, drawn 2 and lost 2 of their last 10 matches
- Apoel Nicosia have won 3, drawn 4 and lost 3 of their last 10 matches
- Over the course of their previous 10 matches, FC Astana have scored an average of 1.5 goals and conceded an average of 1 goals per game
- Over the course of their previous 10 matches, Apoel Nicosia have scored an average of 1 goals and conceded an average of 1.1 goals per game
- There have been over 2.5 goals scored in 4 of FC Astana’s previous 10 matches
- There have been over 2.5 goals scored in 4 of Apoel Nicosia’s previous 10 matches
- This will be the first time the teams have ever met, and only the second UEFA tie between teams from Kazakhstan and Cyprus
FC Astana are sitting two points clear at the top of the Kazakhstan Premier League and are unbeaten in their last six games therefore confidence will be high. Despite the suspension of star striker Twumasi, goals are still coming from all areas of the pitch and they will be looking to become the first Kazakh team to reach the group stages.
Apoel Nicosia won the Cypriot first division last season by three points and were unbeaten at home. They have looked inconsistent during the qualification phase so far, but their previous experience in the competition could earn them a result against a team founded only 6 years ago. Two wins in their last nine matches and a lack of goals is a worry however.
It’s looking increasingly unlikely that the away goals rule will continue to see Apoel Nicosia into the latter stages, so they will need to tighten up in defence and hope that their decent home form in the reverse fixture will be enough.