On August 18, Celtic will face Alkmaar at home in the first round of the UEFA Cup play-offs.
Celtic
Celtic is a strong team in the Scottish Premier League, holding the title for many seasons. Last season, They was crushed by Glasgow Rangers, and the team only finished second in the league.
Although they also got a Champions League qualifying spot, they were eliminated by Danish Super League team Midtjylland, and in turn participated in the UEFA Cup qualifying round.
In the last round of UEFA Cup qualification, Celtic easily advanced to the play-off competition after a two-round double victory over Czech League 1 team Jablonec.
Celtic has been fighting in 3 battlefields recently, not only have to balance the league and UEFA Cup matches, but also have to finish the domestic cup matches. Such an intensive schedule is a considerable test of the players’ physical abilities.
AZ Alkmaar
Alkmaar is a veteran team in the Dutch Eredivisie and has been relatively stable in recent seasons. Last season, the team won 21, drew 8 and lost 5, accumulating 71 points. The team finished 3rd in the league and got a place in the UEFA Cup qualification.
Alkmaar has made a lot of new additions this summer, basically a brand new squad. The departure of the team’s top scorer Boadu has had a significant impact on the formerly skilled attacking side.
Alkmaar played away to weak side RKC Waalwijk in the first round of the Dutch Eredivisie last weekend. The team dominated the field, with 72% possession, 19 shots and 5 on target, nearly three times as many as the opponent. The team was beaten by the opponent in the end of the first half, and then they fought back in the second half, but unfortunately, the team had nothing to show for it.
The team’s morale was slightly affected by the 0-1 defeat against the underdogs in their first match of the season.
Comprehensive Analysis
Celtic are on fire after four straight wins. Alkmaar is not doing well on the road. I think Celtic will win this game.
Prediction one：Celtic +0.25@1.296
Prediction two：BBTS–NO@2.056（Promo Code：1x_486072）
