- 1 Besiktas vs Crystal Palace: Italiano’s perfect home record against a Palace side that just shipped five
- 2 Besiktas: seven home wins from seven and Vlahovic back on his feet
- 3 Crystal Palace: eight goals conceded in four days and no Mateta
- 4 Free Europa League Prediction: Besiktas vs Crystal Palace
- 5 About our free predictions
- 6 No commitment from us
- 7 Information changes
- 8 Your responsibility
- 9 Responsible gambling
- 10 Legal age
- 11 About visuals
Besiktas vs Crystal Palace: Italiano’s perfect home record against a Palace side that just shipped five 
Brighton were three up after ten minutes at the Amex on Sunday, and Crystal Palace finished the afternoon beaten 5-0. Canvot’s own goal came on four minutes, Gomez and Ayari followed, and Kostoulas and Hinshelwood added two more after the break.
That followed a 3-2 defeat in Lyon on Thursday, so Pierre Sage’s side have conceded eight goals in four days. They now travel to Istanbul for Thursday’s 8pm UK time kick-off at Besiktas Park, where the home side have won every game they’ve played this season.
Vincenzo Italiano’s side have won all four of their Super Lig home games: 1-0 against Eyupspor, 6-2 against Corum, 3-0 against Erzurumspor and 2-1 against Kocaelispor. Add the 1-0 qualifying wins over Midtjylland and Hradec Kralove and the 4-1 against Marseille on the opening night of the league phase, and that’s seven home games, seven wins.
Besiktas won 3-2 at Hoffenheim last Thursday and sit on six points from two games. Palace have three, from the 4-0 win over Lech Poznan at Selhurst Park in September.
The clubs have never met. Besiktas also have a league trip to Trabzonspor on Monday night before this, which gives Italiano less recovery time than Sage, who has had Palace on the training pitch since Sunday.
The bookmakers have Besiktas at 2.10 and Palace at 3.00, with the draw at 3.60. On the evidence of the last fortnight, I think that gap should be wider.
Besiktas: seven home wins from seven and Vlahovic back on his feet 
Dusan Vlahovic has six of Besiktas’ league goals, which is more than the next two scorers combined. Vaclav Cerny and Orkun Kokcu have two each.
Vlahovic missed the Hoffenheim game with a stomach illness and Besiktas still scored three in Sinsheim. He’s back in the squad for Trabzonspor, and so is Cerny, who picked up a knock against Kocaelispor and sat out the trip to Germany.
Kokcu is the doubt. The captain was left out of the squad for Monday’s game with an injury, and the club hasn’t given a return date. Rashica is out too. Losing Kokcu would take away one of the three players who have scored three European goals for Besiktas this season, alongside Murillo and Oh.
Italiano’s team are second in the Super Lig with 15 points from seven games, five wins and two defeats. One of those wins was a 2-1 in the derby at Fenerbahce on 5 September. Both losses came on the road, the latest a 3-2 defeat at Amed SK in September.
At home they’ve scored 12 league goals in four games and conceded three. Olaitan has five assists in Europe this season and gives them a second creative route when the ball doesn’t go through the middle.
I’d want to see the team sheet for Kokcu, but this side won in Sinsheim without its best striker. At home this season, nobody has taken a point off them.
no renewal
Free for 2 weeks.
Crystal Palace: eight goals conceded in four days and no Mateta 
Palace are 14th in the Premier League with seven points from seven games, two wins, a draw and four defeats. Their goal difference is minus eight, and five of those goals went in on Sunday.
Jean-Philippe Mateta hasn’t played since the opening day because of a hamstring injury. Chadi Riad is out for the season with a knee problem, Dean Henderson has missed five games with a foot injury, and Takehiro Tomiyasu and Ben Chilwell are doubts. Walter Benitez has been in goal.
The side that lost at Brighton was Benitez; Canvot, Richards, Ahanor, Khalaili, Mitchell; Wharton, Timber, Kamada; Pino, Strand Larsen. Pino has two of Palace’s six European goals this season, and Wharton has two assists.
Palace beat Nottingham Forest 3-1 at Selhurst Park on 11 October, with Kamada, Lerma and Pino scoring, and that was their first home league win of the season. They also won 3-2 at Fulham in early September.
Away from London, though, the recent results read 0-0 at Leeds, 3-2 defeat in Lyon and 5-0 at Brighton. In the last two of those they conceded three and five.
The goals market reflects how open Palace have become. Both teams to score is priced at 1.50 and over 2.5 goals at 1.57, so the bookmakers expect both sides to score and at least three goals in the game.
Axel Disasi served the last game of a three-match domestic ban at Brighton. That suspension doesn’t carry into Europe, so he’s an option for Sage at the back on Thursday.
Probable lineup Besiktas: Not announced at time of publication
Probable lineup Crystal Palace: Not announced at time of publication (XI at Brighton: Benitez; Canvot, Richards, Ahanor, Khalaili, Mitchell; Wharton, Timber, Kamada; Pino, Strand Larsen)
Free Europa League Prediction: Besiktas vs Crystal Palace
Our prediction: Besiktas to win (2.10)
I’d back Besiktas. They’ve won all seven games at home this season, including a 4-1 against Marseille in this competition, and they scored three in Germany last week without Vlahovic.
The case against is Kokcu’s fitness and the Trabzonspor game three days earlier. Palace have scored in five of their last seven matches, so I don’t expect a clean sheet. Neither point changes the bigger picture: Palace have conceded eight in two games, are without their first-choice striker and goalkeeper, and their last three away games brought a draw at Leeds and defeats in Lyon and at Brighton.
Besiktas have also scored at least twice in each of their last six games in all competitions, and Palace’s back line has let in 17 league goals in seven matches. Besiktas to win at 2.10 is the pick.
in your pocket.
Real-time notifications & alerts
_________
About our free predictions
- What we publish on MathOdds are analyses, nothing more. We share a view, a reading of the moment, but never a guarantee. Sport remains what it is: unpredictable. A red card, an injury, a last-minute goal, and the script changes completely.
- Let’s be clear: there is no such thing as a risk-free bet. Even when it looks “obvious”, nothing ever is. And yes, that means you can lose. It’s even inevitable at some point.
- The smartest approach is to stay reasonable. Bet small, set a budget and stick to it. Never use money you need to live on. And above all: don’t chase your losses: that rarely ends well.
- A bet should remain a game, not a job or a source of income. If it starts taking up too much space in your daily life, causes stress or frustration, take a break. And if needed, talk to a support organisation: that’s what they’re there for.
- Ultimately, responsibility lies with you. Reading our content means accepting that risk exists and will never disappear, no matter how good the analysis.
- Essential reminder: gambling is prohibited for minors and must comply with the laws of your country. Need help? Visit begambleaware.org.
No commitment from us
Our predictions carry no contractual value. They have no legal standing. In short: you cannot rely on them to claim anything if a bet doesn’t come through.
Information changes
A prediction is always based on what we know at the time of writing. But between publication and kick-off, a lineup can change, a player picks up an injury, the weather turns, and the analysis can quickly be outdated. We cannot be held responsible for that.
Your responsibility
Before placing a bet, simply check that gambling is legal in your country. If it isn’t, that’s your responsibility, not ours.
Responsible gambling
We can’t say it enough: gamble responsibly. If you’re struggling to stay in control, don’t wait to seek help.
Legal age
MathOdds content is intended for adults only. By browsing here, you confirm you meet the legal age requirement for gambling in your jurisdiction.
About visuals
The images and logos of Besiktas and Crystal Palace on MathOdds are used solely to illustrate our articles. They do not imply any official affiliation with a federation or sports organisation, and we claim no rights over them. Those rights belong to their original owners. If any visual raises a concern, contact us and it will be removed without delay.
Leave a Reply