Make bookies pay for underestimating 96ers

Hannover is the best bet on Thursday`s 24-match UEFA Europa League card as bookmakers continue to underestimate one of the least fashionable teams in the German Bundesliga.

The 96ers are going places under their incredibly underrated coach, Mirko Slomka. They have finished the last two German Bundesliga seasons in fourth and seventh and they are fifth after six rounds of the current campaign. And their home form is a significant reason why they are flying so high.

Hannover is undefeated in its last eight competitive home games - six wins and two draws - while its last 31 matches at its AWD-Arena have resulted in 19 wins, 11 draws and only one loss and that was 1-2 against Atletico Madrid in last season`s UEFA Europa League. Atletico scored its winning goal three minutes from time as Hannover chased the tie.

Another Spanish La Liga side, Levante, is Hannover`s UEFA Europa League opponent on Thursday. The Valencia-based team is not travelling well in its domestic competition this term - it is 11th after half a dozen rounds - and its away form does not match up to the home form that Hannover boasts.

Levante was thrashed 0-4 at Osasuna on Sunday and its last three road games have all resulted in defeats. Go further back and, of Levante`s last 21 competitive away matches, it has lost 16 of them. That is a very, very bad road record.

Hannover is around 5-6 to beat Levante and that leaps off the UEFA Europa League coupon. Surely no-one could argue if Slomka`s side was 4-6 to defeat its travel-sick opponent.

Another UEFA Europa League that is two or more rolls over the odds is Internazionale, with the Italian Serie A giant trading at around 4-5 to beat Neftchi in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. The Nerazzurri should be 4-6 or shorter.

Internazionale has won its last five competitive away games without conceding a goal and lies third in the Italian Serie A after six rounds. Neftchi has had an up and down start to its season, both domestically and internationally, ending up in the UEFA Europa League after losing 2-6 on aggregate to Hapoel Ironi Kiryat Shmona. That is pretty ordinary form.

Club Brugge and Tottenham are likely to attract support at odds-against quotes for their UEFA Europa League matches versus Maritimo and Panathinaikos respectively but neither team is as wrongly priced as Hannover or Internazionale.

An interesting UEFA Europa League exotic bet is one on the game between Videoton and Sporting producing fewer than three goals, an option that is available at around 10-11.

Videoton, fifth in the Hungarian NB I after nine rounds, has scored a paltry five goals in its seven UEFA Europa League matches this season, all of them against sides weaker than Sporting. And three of those five goals came in one game.

Sporting`s away form is mediocre to say the least - no wins in its last five road games - but only one of those five matches has gone over the traditional line of 2.5 goals.

Neither team can afford to lose on Thursday because both Videoton and Sporting failed to win their opening Group G matches. A low-scoring affair is a good bet at the odds.

Finally, a note about the UEFA Europa League game between Newcastle and Bordeaux. Only Manchester City has beaten the Magpies at Sports Direct Arena since December 2011, with the Toon Army winning 11 and drawing the other three of their last 14 competitive home matches. But Bordeaux is unbeaten in its last 17 meaningful games so the market is correct.

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04/10/2012     © Frixo 2024