Sunday 27/07/2014, 18:00, Ireland Premier League, Round 21, UCD vs Derry City

UCD vs Derry City Betting Preview

Derry City's surge ended abruptly when the team lost both legs against Shakthyor, but the good news is that they can now focus exclusively on the domestic championship. The problem is that they trail the leader by so many points that it is virtually impossible to close the gap and the best case scenario is for them to qualify for another Europa League at the end of the season. UCD has more pressing matters to resolve, but the good news is that they also have an easier mission and they only need to avoid relegation.

UCD vs Derry City Betting Odds

At Bet365

UCD 4.70, Draw 3.50, Derry City 1.75

UCD vs Derry City Betting Tips

The visitors enjoyed a good run prior to allowing six goals while scoring just one in the continental competition, but this doesn't matter anymore. They were supposed to play a friendly game one week ago, but in the end they decided to postpone it indefinitely, even though that didn't make a difference.

Players came under heavy fire in the second leg and allowed five goals despite their best efforts, with fatigue being a serious problem. Derry City took more chances upfront in an attempt of reversing the first leg result, but that backfired and some lessons need to be learned. Tonight manager Hutton is very likely to stick to a more conservative formation, featuring just two strikers and four defenders.

McEleney and Patterson will pair up front as they have scored a combined nine goals this season, while Curran will be kept on the bench. At least in theory, they shouldn't have a hard time defending against UCD, which is one of the worst scoring teams in the league, but recent results are worrisome.

The underdogs are extremely motivated to earn as many points as possible in the remaining rounds and they were particularly effective in the last four games. After winning three in a row, they went down by 2-1 away at Cork City, but the team played very well and scored the first goal.

Key Facts

• Derry City won a single match on the road this season out of a total of 10, while UCD lost just four matches at home
• The head to head record favors the visiting team with home pitch advantage being irrelevant in the last seven rounds.

UCD vs Derry City Betting Prediction

Derry City has a slight advantage over the hosts, but by no means these high ones are justified, with punters enjoying odds of 2.15 for UCD to win or draw. It is only fair to assume that they will drop as kickoff draws near, but for the time being punters should swarm Bet365 and place their wagers.

Bet: UCD or Draw @ 2.15 with Bet365