The Joker's Bet Of The Day: Thursday April 30

The Joker's bet of the day / The Joker / 30 April 2009 / Leave a Comment

The Joker licks his lips at tonight's all-Ukrainian UEFA Cup semi-final...

This is a European football column, and a recent family trip to Café Rouge has filled the Joker with a sense of Continental sophistication. It's time, then, for his favourite gastro-joke.

Why was the chef suicidal?

Because he'd lost the huile d'olive.

Probably best not to labour the tenuous culinary connection to Dinamo Kiev. Suffice it to say that a home win for Dinamo in the first leg of their UEFA Cup semi-final with Shakhtar Donetsk would bring the tie nicely to the boil for the return fixture in a week's time.

Dinamo have won 13 of their last 15 games at the Lobanovsky Stadium in all competitions, and home advantage has counted for something in recent meetings of Ukraine's two biggest clubs. The hosts have won six of the last 10 games, won two more on penalties and drawn the other two. [2.08] is a tasty price for Dinamo to win this evening's match.