Martin Griffiths Free Picks & Best Bets for Soccer

Bayer Leverkusen drew 0-0 with Krasnador in the first leg of this Europa League tie and I am very confident that they will win this game now they are back at home and win it fairly comfortably.

Even though Bayer Leverkusen was away they absolutely dominated the first game, they had 65% of the possession, they had eight corners to Krasnadors one, they edged shots on goal 4-3 and 10-7 on shots overall.

I expect those sort of stats to be similar again today if not better, Bayer have home advantage and that is significant in Germany, their form has improved massively in recent weeks after a poor start to the season and they will be much fitter than their rivals, who are coming off a mid-season winter break.

Krasnador had their opportunity to take a lead into this game and failed and now that they are playing away, against a team from a far stronger league who outplayed them in the first game, I cannot see anything other than a loss for the Russian side.

I expect Leverkusen to take an early lead which will force the Russian side to attack and that will leave them vulnerable at the back and I see Bayer winning this game by 2-3 goals.

Take Bayer Leverkusen -1.25

Interesting Europa League game, the first leg finished 0-0 which gives Genk a slight advantage, however, a single goal from Slavia Praha and Genk will have to score twice.

Both teams top their respective leagues, however, the Belgium League is a bit stronger than the Czech league and despite the maths of an away goal, the advantage is with Genk.

Both teams lost at the weekend, no doubt because they had one eye on this game and weirdly enough, both those defeats were against their nearest rivals in their leagues.

Even looking at the respective home and away form there is little to separate these two sides, Genk has won four of their last five home games in all competitions and Slavia have won three of their last four away games.

This game for me, all comes down to home advantage and the fact that I believe that the Belgium league is stronger than the Czech league and based on that I do see Genk squeezing out a narrow win.

Take Genk -0.5

Dynamo Kyiv did very well to get a draw away at Olympiakos in the first leg and I am backing them to go one better and get the win today.

Kyiv is on a winter break which makes their 2-2 draw in Greece all the more impressive, they have had mixed results recently, both in friendlies and competitive games but then so have Olympiakos and in terms of actual form, there is not much between them.

Because of the away goals, Kyiv has the advantage and Olympiakos will have to go for goal and that means that Kyiv will probably be looking to play counter-attack football today even though they are the home side.

Kyiv will not sit back completely, they will have gained confidence from the first leg but because of the conditions of this game they will want to stay organised and defensive as much as possible but I am of the opinion that because Olympiakos will be forced to attack that will give a lot of opportunities to Kyiv to grab a goal themselves.

The way I see this game unfolding makes backing the home side the most logical bet to have and one that I will be doing.

Take Kyiv -0.25

Fenerbahce carries a 1-0 lead from the first leg against Zenit in this Europa League last 32 clash.

The Turkish side has the advantage of being in the middle of their season while Zenit has been on a two-month winter break, but there are good reasons to back the Russian side to get the win today.

For starters, Fenerbahce is having a poor season, they have turned their form around a little recently but they remain in 15th place (out of 18) in the Turkish league and could only muster a home draw against Konyaspor at the weekend and are on a four-game winless run away from home in all competitions.

Zenit came a little unstuck before the winter break but remain top of the Russian League and have put a good run together in friendly games, they will have come on a lot following the game against Fenerbahce and will be fitter and more match ready for it.

Fenerbahce just need a draw or even to lose by a single goal as long as they get an away goal and that will determine how they play this game, which will initially be defensive minded, Zenit will have no choice but to go for the win and that will be how they approach this match and a lot will depend on whether there is an early goal or not.

All things considered, I am of the opinion that Zenit has more going for them and will get the win today, whether they qualify is another matter.

Take Zenit -0.5