The Obscure Betting Column: Remember this guy? Back his team...

The Joker's Bet Of The Day / Ben Lyttleton / 19 December 2008 / Leave a Comment

In the last Obscure Betting Column (at least for this season), the Obscure Betting Boys go to Belgium, Holland and Turkey in search of value where you didn't know it existed.

Galatasary v Besiktas

There is a similar feel to the Turkish league this season as there was in the last campaign: a slow start for the big boys Galatasaray and Fenerbahce (who suffered their worst ever start to a season) and surprise leaders, Sivasspor, with question-marks over whether they could keep their form going into the New Year.

So it's as you were, with Sivasspor sitting pretty on top with Galatasaray one point and Fener two points back. This weekend, Galatasaray welcome Istanbul rivals Besiktas to the Ali Sami Yen, and their unbeaten home record looks set to continue: the champions have scored 20
goals in their seven home matches this season, of which they have won six and drawn one.

Milan Baros is the league's top scorer with 11 goals, while Brazilian playmaker Lincoln, one of the favourites to win Player of the Year award, is in third place with seven goals. Besiktas have lost two of their last three games and dropped to sixth place: coach Mustafa Denizli is struggling to motivate his players before the winter break, and the home side could yet end the first half of the season top of the table. Either way, expect goals in this one.

RECOMMENDATION Over 2.5 goals @ [1.85]

PSV v Feyenoord

They may be reigning champions, but PSV Eindhoven are doing a poor job of defending their title: their best players, Ibrahim Afellay, Danko Lazovic, and Carlos Salcido all want to leave while those that are staying, like Andreas Isaksson and Danny Koevermans, are in a wretched run of form.

They have only won once in their last six league games and have slipped to nine points behind leaders AZ. Their opponents on Sunday, Feyenoord, can only dream of having such problems: they are four points off the drop zone, have won five of their last 20 league and European games, and couldn't afford to sack coach Gertjan Verbeek even if they wanted to: "He'll
be here next Christmas as well as this one," club director Eric Gudde was quoted as saying.

The squad is a mixture of young players, like highly-rated teenagers Georginio Wijnaldum and Leroy Fer, and experienced heads like Roy Makaay, Michael Mols, Gio van Bronckhorst and Jan Dahl Tommasson. But none of them are performing well in front of error-prone keeper Henk Timmer (whom Dutch pundit Johan Derksen described as "obsessed with the cameras, only getting himself noticed through strange theatricals and high-school dramatics") and after Kevin Hofland injured himself walking his dog, luck is against them too. They are the perfect opposition for PSV to get back to winning ways before the winter break, and Verbeek could be in for a frosty festive period.

RECOMMENDATION PSV to beat FEYENOORD @ [1.6]

Charleroi v Dender (Belgium)

Charleroi are 11th in the league but that was not enough to save Thierry Siguet from losing his job as coach this week. In his place has come a pioneer of the game, someone who turned down a job at QPR and missed out on the job at West Ham: former Hibs manager John Collins.

The 40-year-old, who was one of the first to embrace the Bosman era as a player, is determined to hit the ground running as his six-month contract starts just before the winter break. In truth, Charleroi's form going into the game is not too bad: they have only lost one of their last five home games, and scored ten goals in the process. The team are reliant on striker Cyril Thereau but with Dender having not won since late-October and dropping down the division
like a stone (despite the efforts of their forward, former Barnet and Banbury man Norman Syilla), it could be a happy debut for Collins.

RECOMMENDATION CHARLEROI to beat DENDER @ [1.67]