Europa League Betting – Rubin Kazan at Liverpool
Rubin Kazan (+600) at Liverpool (-187), Draw (+275)
It’s still early in the tournament, but Liverpool already have a must-win game looming next week (Thursday, Oct. 22nd, at 3:05 PM Eastern) when they play host to Russian side Rubin Kazan at Anfield in Europa League action.
Liverpool started their Europa League season with two draws (1-1 away against Bordeaux and 1-1 at home versus Sion). They currently sit second in the group with two points, two back of leaders Sion. Bordeaux are also on two points, though, and Liverpool only occupy second spot thanks to one more goal scored. In sum, the team needs to take the full three points from next week’s home game or their chances to advance will be in serious jeopardy.
Liverpool have also underperformed in the Premier League, though, going just 3-3-2 in their first eight games and sitting tenth in the table. The slow start saw the front office make a change at manager, firing Brendan Rodgers in favor of ex-Borussia Dortmund mastermind Jürgen Klopp.
“It has been very positive,” defender Lucas Leiva said about Klopp’s first few training sessions. “He seems to be very passionate – he likes to put in everything that he has and he asks the players for the same. Be very intense, be aggressive with yourself, is what he has been saying. Always try to be better, always give 10 meters more, because that will be the key to success.”
Klopp was the German Football Manager of the Year in 2011 and 2012 after winning the Bundesliga in the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons. He also took Dortmund to the UEFA Champions League final in 2013, losing to Bayern Munich. He will make his debut with Liverpool this weekend against Tottenham in EPL action.
Rubin Kazan are the one team below Liverpool in the Group B standings with just one point through two fixtures. They lost 2-1 to Sion in Switzerland and drew 0-0 at home against Bordeaux. Like the Reds, the Kamni are also struggling in their own domestic league, sitting in the relegation zone with just seven points through 11 games.
There isn’t much in the way of trends as the teams have never met before. But Liverpool have won their last three at home against Russian teams and certainly have the stronger roster. Look for Klopp to bring out a better performance from his new team and Liverpool to emerge with the win.
Pick: Liverpool (-187).
(Photo credit: Dean Jones (flickr) [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode]. Photo has been cropped.)
Zack is a tour guide whose favorite sports are football, baseball, and golf. He enjoys giving obnoxious commentary during games and hopes to some day write a book about sports. His favorite underdog victory was the Diamondbacks beating the Yankees in game 7 of the World Series.
