PAOK Thessaloniki vs Basel Predictions, Betting Tips and Match Previews

Having finished second in the Greek Super League last season, PAOK avoided the earlier rounds of qualification, so this will be their first match in UEFA Champions League qualifying 2018. Having failed to qualify for this competition when last eligible to do so back in 2016, the Greek outfit will be hoping to make it all the way to the group stages, which is something that they’ve never managed to do before.

Like PAOK, Basel finished second in their own division last season, so they too avoided the earlier rounds, though it’s not as if their task is an easy one. Fortunately, reaching the group stages is something that Basel have done previously. The Swiss club have featured in the groups of this prestigious competition four times, and they’ll be hoping that such experiences hold them in good stead.

Basel didn’t exactly go into their opening league fixture against St Gallen on Saturday in great shape – the team who finished second in the Swiss Super League last season had lost three friendlies on the spin, while they’d conceded an awful lot of goals in the process – and their poor run continued. After losing on their own patch, confidence in the Basel dressing room may be in short supply ahead of this match.

In contrast, PAOK have been warming up nicely ahead of this fixture. Their domestic league hasn’t started up again, though their efforts in friendlies have been anything but slack. Since the end of last season, Tuesday’s hosts have played six fixtures, only one of which they’ve lost. After beating both Antwerp and De Graafschap in their last two matches, scoring five goals in the process, the Greek side ought to fancy their chances against a Basel side that is currently floundering defensively.

Form in friendlies should never be taken too seriously, though it was worrying how easy Basel were conceding prior to their league return last weekend, while their defensive efforts against St Gallen were poor. Away from home against a PAOK side who’ve scored plenty of goals of late, the visitors’ defensive problems could be set to continue. At the prices, the first bet that stands out is ‘PAOK to Score Over 1.5 Goals’.

From a goal-scoring point of view, the hosts are hard to ignore, though they’re also not the sturdiest at the back. For all their offensive work of late has been good, PAOK have conceded their fair share of goals, shipping at least once in each of their six warm-up fixtures. ‘Over 2.5 Goals’ has landed in five of those.

With neither side looking particularly strong at the back, a bet on ‘Over 2.5 Goals’, a bet which has yielded a profit in eight of the PAOK and Basel’s last ten matches combined, appears to represent a small slice of value at the current prices.