Wednesday 13/08/2014, 19:00, Norway Cup, Molde vs Viking

Molde vs Viking Preview

The Tippeligaen resumes on Friday, but meanwhile the best teams are competing for qualification in the next round of the Norwegian Super Cup. Leaders Molde take on Viking in a match where they are credited with the first chance, but their recent track record raises many questions. They are winless in exactly 2 weeks and August started with a disappointing elimination from Europa League.

Molde vs Viking Odds

At Bet365

Molde 1.50, Draw 4.00, Viking 6.00

Molde vs Viking Tips

Molde is still comfortably leading the first division and it is very unlikely for them to be overtaken by the runners up anytime soon. Now that their European campaign is over, they can focus on the remaining competitions with the first challenge being to advance the next stage of the Norwegian cup.

They take on Viking and the fact that they have home pitch advantage should allow them to exercise constant pressure, over an otherwise defensive minded team. The visitors are reluctant to take many chances upfront, because the recent game against Molde ended in a narrow margin defeat after they allowed an early goal.

The hosts have the best offensive in Tippeligaen and their top four strikers have scored a combined 29 goals, with Elyounoussi being by far the most successful one. He is expected to play tonight alongside Hoiland while Nigerian Chima and Gulbrandsen are probably going to wait on the bench and only join the fight if the hosts fail to take an early lead.

As for Viking, the Norwegian cup is their best chance to secure a place in the next Europa league campaign, given the fact that they are trailing the leading pack by a wide margin. Although winning was pretty difficult for them this month, it is worth mentioning that they are yet to lose a match in August.

Key Facts

• Viking lost a single game in the last 10 rounds and five of the matches ended undecided, with scoreless draws being the most numerous ones.
• The head to head record is surprisingly balanced, with Viking having a slight advantage over Molde, as a result of winning 14 games out of 37 and only losing 10.

Molde vs Viking Prediction

Bookmakers are overplaying their hand tonight by offering odds of 1.50 for the home team to prevail and there is absolutely no point for punters to settle for these odds. By contrast, crediting the visitors not to lose by two goals or more, will result in odds of 2.00, which is a far better proposition. Even odds on Viking to win or draw, while having the cover of a 0:1 Asian handicap is a great way to tackle this match, because if Molde wins by exactly one goal, the stakes are returned.

Bet: Viking +1.0 goals @ 2.00 with Bet365