BTTS is a popular bet among sports gamblers, and as the beautiful game develops and teams become more and more attacking, the chances of BTTS landing increases. For this week’s BBTS picks, we turn to the Europa League play-offs, focusing on teams that love to score goals but tend to leak chances at the back.
Celtic v Stuttgart
The Scottish champions welcome Stuttgart to the cauldron of passion that is Celtic Park, a setting that will provide a true measure of how far Martin O’Neill has taken this side.
It has been a remarkable and turbulent campaign. Celtic dismissed Brendan Rodgers in October, initially turning to O’Neill in an interim role.
The subsequent appointment of Wilfried Nancy as permanent head coach proved disastrous, with results plunging to their worst level in two decades and Nancy lasting just 33 days before O’Neill was recalled—this time permanently.
Since his return, the transformation has been striking. Celtic are unbeaten and scoring freely, with new signing Nygren quickly making his mark, supported superbly by highly rated German playmaker Engels.
Such has been the turnaround since the turn of the year that it is difficult to imagine the hosts failing to find the net here.
However, Stuttgart are also well-equipped to strike back, boasting a prolific Bundesliga strike partnership in Undav and Demirović, which suggests both sides could be on the scoresheet at a lively Celtic Park. On the other hand, both teams tend to be leaky at the back, giving away some silly goals.
For this reason, the tie looks like the ideal candidate for a BTTS=yes scoreline.
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Panathinaikos v Viktorai Plzen
This finely balanced tie pits the Greek superclub against the perennial bridesmaids of the Czech league.
On the pitch, much of the focus is likely to fall on a battle between two influential attacking midfielders.
For the Greeks, Vicente Taborda has been in prolific form in domestic competition, while the dynamic Denis Visinský represents the primary attacking threat for the Czech side.
Although the previous meeting between these teams in the group stage ended in a goalless draw, that result looks more like an anomaly.
Both sides have been scoring freely at home, and with the added intensity of a knockout encounter, we expect their attacking quality to come to the fore.
At the same time, neither defence is particularly reliable, with Plzen in particular leaking goals at the back.
We expect an exciting game with plenty of thrills and spills, and the perfect candidate for BTTS= yes.
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Fenerbahce v Nottingham Forest
Given their relegation travails in the Premier League, Forest probably could do without a trip to one of Europe’s most hostile cauldrons.
However, that’s exactly what they face in this tie. The Sukru Saracoglu is well known for its loud and aggressive atmosphere, as well as being the prettiest of the new generation of Turkish Superlig stadia.
The attacking talent of the Turks is also impressive, with star striker Asensio ably supported by Talisca, and it’s hard to see Forest shutting them out for a full 90 minutes.
On the defensive side, Fener concede too many goals, and the signing of Ederson from Man City in the winter has done little to aid things.
As for Forest, the big question is whether we will see the typical new manager bounce, now that Victor Pereira will be the fourth coach this season.
It’s a shame that last season’s Kiwi revelation, Chris Wood has fallen off form this time round, but Igor Jesus and Ndoye should have enough talent to find gaps at the back, and if they can keep their cool in this hot house, then we think BBTS should be well within their capabilities.
