Football Tips 02/05/2014 -

CSKA have hit a patch of stunning form and it’s come at the perfect time, with AVB’s recent revival of Zenit and the slip ups by Lokomotiv they are showing that they are not out of the race but with just 3 games remaining and a 4 point gap between them and top they absolutely need to win today. 7 straight wins for the Moscow outfit will see confidence and moral at a high and they will need to be at their best to beat a side that are usually strong at home. In recent weeks it seems Amkar have all but given up on the league, too far behind to challenge for the European spots but in no trouble regarding relegation, they are now without a win in 7 and have actually lost the last 3 games on the trot at home including two worryingly poor results to Terek Grozny and relegation battlers Ural. Amkar have beaten CSKA just once in all 19 of the league meetings played since 2004.

Recent form may seem poor at a glance but ignoring their inevitable defeat to 1st place Zenit and their unlucky loss to 2nd place Lokomotiv and we have a determined side with just 1 loss in 5, they will be looking to get back on track today though and with Anzhi picking up form at the death it seems Volga are now the easiest proposition within the Premier Division. Krasnodar are 6th right now, 1 point behind Spartak Moscow in the final European Spot and this is their main target with the season coming towards its end, a win today will see them move up a place, until tomorrow at lewast. Volga are a club in crisis, with relegation looking all but a certain at this point and financial troubles affecting players wages focus they will need a miracle to win here or, as in their game against Rostov, another very generous referee.

There are 4 games left to play in this Hamburg based Oberliga division with this likely the most important for Vier, mainly as it is one they should definitely be winning. Visitors Bramfelder are bottom of the table with just 8 points, all picked up from draws, they have conceded a whopping 80 goals so far and at this point will just want the season to come to an end. On the road they have scored just 1 in the last 5 played, losing all but 1 by 2 or more goals. The main focus for this tip is the history between the sides, 3 meetings in the last few years, Vier have won all, 3-1, 4-1 and in the reverse fixture, 5-0. A win for Vier will see them just 1 point from escaping automatic relegation and with a big game next week against the side sitting just above them will see a way out.

Al Ahli are division champions, 15 points clear and with a game in hand over the teams close to them they have won with relative ease. At this point we would expect them to let their foot off the gas but this is not the case as they look to set a new points tally for the league, a record currently held by Al Ain who finished last season with 62. Coach Catalin Raducan replied with the following when asked about the end of the season “We are not here on holiday. We want to set some records and the best way to achieve this would be to maintain our level of play.” stating their need to perform in the final 2 league fixtures with a very tough Cup final game against Al Ain on May 18th. Ahli have now won the last 5 league fixtures in a row and while a resurgent Ajman side will be looking to cause an upset their league safety is assured and will likely lead to a less than focused performance.