SuperSportBet: Weekend football betting tips

Kaizer Chiefs vs Royal AM

Date: Saturday, November 30, 2024

Kickoff: 17:45 SAST

Venue: Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane

Kaizer Chiefs play a successive home fixture in Polokwane, after Wednesday’s 2-1 victory against Richards Bay, hoping to exorcise the ghosts of Soccer City after the sobering 4-0 thumping they received there from Mamelodi Sundowns earlier this month. Chiefs had high hopes that their new coach Nasreddine Nabi might prove the panacea after nine seasons without any trophy success but his first three months in charge has proven most unconvincing

Royal AM are in their second season under a FIFA ban on signing new players as they refuse to settle outstandings debts with former players Samir Nurkovic and Ricardo Nascimento. Their lack of playing resources can sometimes be to their benefit as there is consistency in selection and a chance for the players to play together more often and better their combinations. But once injuries and suspensions start piling up, they are going to be in serious trouble.

Key Betting Insights:

Home from home: Chiefs have long had a lucrative arrangement with the municipality in Polokwane to move some of their home games to the Peter Mokaba Stadium, which they started with their midweek win over Richards Bay.  But it was already their three encounter at the venue this season after away games against SuperSport United, which they lost, and Magesi, where they were two goals down but rallied back to draw the match.

Learning to win: Royal AM let an early lead slip at home on Tuesday in the derby against Lamontville Golden Arrows and went onto lose 3-2, leaving them only three points above the relegation zone. Since April, Royal AM have won only two of 17 matches overall and on the road this season have two draws and a defeat.

Betting angles:

Less than 2.5 Total Goals: Only two of the seven previous matches between these two clubs have delivered three goals or more in a game. Their two meetings in the league last season both ended in frustrating goalless draws. 

First goal: A return from a myriad of niggling injuries for Ashley du Preez is a major positive for Chiefs. The speedy striker has yet to win over fans but there is no doubting that when he is on song, he can be a potent force for the club. He scored on Wednesday and is fancied to do so again.

Prediction:

Score Prediction: Kaizer Chiefs 2-0 Royal AM

Royal AM won the first three meetings between the two teams but Chiefs are unbeaten in the four clashes since then, winning twice, one of which was in extra time in a cup clash two seasons ago.

Orlando Pirates vs Stellenbosch

Date: Sunday, December 1, 2024

Kickoff: 15:30 SAST

Venue: Orlando Stadium, Soweto

This game had been scheduled for Saturday but with both teams heading back home after lengthy journeys to compete in African club competition in midweek, they have 24 hours’ grace. Pirates travelled 20 hours both ways via Turkey for their clash in the Champions League on Tuesday against Chabab Belouizdad in Algeria. Stellenbosch only played on Wednesday in Mali and then travelled back via Addis Ababa in a similarly fatigue-inducing journey

Stellenbosch would have marked this fixture on their calendar after the MTN8 final in October where they felt they had been hard done by. Poor refereeing costs them, according to coach Steve Barker. In the end, they lost 3-1 to Pirates at Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium and have been smarting ever since, which will add some extra spice to this league fixture. 

Key Betting Insights:

Record run: Pirates have already set a new club record by winning their first seven league games of the season and opened up a three-point lead over champions Mamelodi Sundowns. The confidence that has given the side contributed greatly to their well-earned 2-1 win in the Champions League in Algeria on Tuesday.

Good memories: Stellenbosch have won on both of their last visits to the Orlando Stadium, including a memorable victory last December when they were 2-0 down after an hour but rallied to win 3-2. They also won in last season’s MTN8 semi-final, second leg tie but the 1-0 triumph was not enough to overturn their aggregate deficit from the first leg in the Cape.

 

Betting angles:

Less 2.5 Total Goals: Tight defence is likely to be the priority for both coaches, who will be wary of each other’s capabilities and therefore have their plans centred around making sure they give nothing away at the back.

 

Anytime goalscorer: Mohau Nkota has burst onto the scene in spectacular style, threatening to take the spotlight away from fellow 20-year-old Relebohile Mofokeng. Nkota got two goals in the Champions League on Tuesday to double his overall tally for the season and will be looking for more against Stellies.

Prediction:

Score Prediction: Orlando Pirates 1-0 Stellenbosch

It will be a tight affair with likely fatigue showing after their midweek journeys, and therefore possibly settled by just a single goal. Pirates are fancied to make it eight out of eight and keep up their impressive start to the season.

Chelsea vs Aston Villa

Date: Sunday, December 1, 2024

Kickoff: 15:30 SAST

Venue: Stamford Bridge, London

Both clubs return from midweek action in European club competition and go head-to-head in a key clash in the race for a place in the Premier League top four. They are separated by just one point. The Blues will be looking to extend their unbeaten run at home to 10 matches

Villa might not have won in Champions League on Wednesday but were unlucky against Juventus and have picked up plenty of confidence from their performance in the competition. They have won three of their five group games and are chasing a place in the top eight which would put them directly into the last-16. All this after 40 years without competing in Europe’s top club event.

Key Betting Insights:

Finding consistency: Enzo Maresca’s team have lost only twice this season – against the top two teams Liverpool and Manchester City. In both games, they had chances to avoid defeat but did not convert them. Last season, under Mauricio Pochettino, Chelsea’s players regularly had a drop in their performance, especially in defence, which led them to concede too many goals. But now it is a problem they look to have fixed.

Getting back to winning ways: Villa come into this game on the back of seven games without success. They have lost their last three away games, scoring only once. It is not easy to explain the reasons for their slump in results because Unai Emery’s side have played with good organisation and high intensity. The main difference with their successful start of the season, when Villa won seven in nine matches, is their inability to convert scoring chances and frequent errors in positional defence.

Betting angles:

Both Teams To Score: The most common result of matches between Chelsea and Villa is 1-1. A total of eight past clashes between the pair have ended with this result.

Anytime scorer: Cole Palmer has not contributed goals or assists in the last three matches, but back at home, his top talent cannot be discounted and a return to the scoresheet is predicted. The 22-year-old scored 22 Premier League goals last season and has seven goals from 12 league matches this season 

Prediction:

- Score Prediction: Chelsea 1 Aston Villa 1

There has not been a home win in any of the last eight clashes between these two clubs in all competitions. Villa have kept a clean sheet in each of their last three visits to Stamford Bridge, winning twice and drawing the other.

 

Liverpool vs Manchester City

- Date: Sunday, December 1, 2024

- Kickoff: 18:00 SAST

- Venue: Anfield, Liverpool

The platitudes have bene pouring in for the Reds, particularly after Wednesday’s triumph over Real Madrid, but also as they have taken firm command of the Premier League standings. But this is the game where they will be severely tested, and which they will be wary of, especially as they come up against a wooden opponent desperate to turn their failing fortunes around.

Manchester City are firmly embedded in a crisis, exacerbated by their collapse against Feyenoord from the Netherlands in their Champions League tie on Tuesday, where they surrendered a 3-0 lead and were held to a draw. That came on top of a scarcely believable 4-0 home defeat against Tottenham last weekend which was the first time since 2006 that they had lost five games in a row.

Key Betting Insights:

Back in action: Liverpool manager Arne Slot has confirmed that Trent Alexander-Arnold will be fit to start on Sunday, having not played a minute of competitive football since suffering a hamstring injury in the Reds' 2-0 triumph over Aston Villa before the international break, which meant that he had to withdraw from the England squad.

Alexander-Arnold failed to make the cut against Southampton in Liverpool's first game back but was among the substitutes for Wednesday's Champions League win over Real.

All or nothing: Veteran Man City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan admitted City’s hopes of winning a fifth Premier League title in a row could suffer a fatal blow if they lose to Liverpool, and even manager Pep Guardiola has said the champions are fragile. Manchester City’s injury problems have been clear for all to see during their six-game winless run. As well as Rodri, Mateo Kovacic is out and John Stones is a doubt after missing Tuesday’s draw against Feyenoord.

Betting angles:

Under 2.5 Total Goals: Liverpool have conceded just six goals in 11 Premier League games so far this season, keeping a league-high six clean sheets. But the Reds are on a run of four without a win against the Citizens, although the last two under Jurgen Klopp ended 1-1.

Anytime scorer:  There was much noise this week about Mohamed Salah’s future, all presumably part of the negotiating tactics over a possible new contract, but there is no doubting the Egyptian’s desire against Man City. He has scored 10 goals in the league this season, second only to Erling Haaland's 12. The Liverpool winger has also scored 11 career goals against Man City across all competitions, with six coming at Anfield.

Prediction:

Score Prediction: Liverpool 1 Manchester City 1

Man City are tasked with ending their winless run by securing maximum points against Liverpool at a stadium where they have celebrated just one victory in their last 21 top-flight visits. But this could be the game where the begin to mount a comeback and give us the thrilling Premier League tussle for power that we all crave.

Borussia Dortmund vs Bayern Munich

Date: Saturday, November 30, 2024

Kickoff: 19:30 SAST

Venue: Westfalenstadion, Dortmund

The latest edition of the Klassiker will see the side with the strongest home record so far this season (six wins) host the club with the best away figures (five wins and one draw). Dortmund have four wins in their last five games, with 11 goals scored and just two conceded in the process. A comfortable 4-0 home victory over Freiburg in the Bundesliga last weekend was followed by a 3-0 win away against Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League on Wednesday.

The nine wins, two draws and 36-7 goal difference in his first 11 matches makes Vincent Kompany's start officially the best of a new coach in Bundesliga history. They were lacking consistency earlier this season but are now a real force to be reckoned with, and posted a 1-0 win over 10-man Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Key Betting Insights:

Players back from injury: The severe injury crisis Borussia Dortmund have been facing was easing by the end of the November international break. Waldemar Anton, Gregor Kobel and Jamie Gittens were declared fit in time to start their 4-0 win over Freiburg, with Giovanni Reyna also coming on as a substitute. Niklas Süle, Karim Adeyemi and Kjell Wätjen had returned to training by then, and they could be back for Saturday’s clash.

 

No way through: Racking up seven successive clean sheets across all competitions since a 4-1 blip at Barcelona in the Champions League proves that Bayern learnt from that stinging experience. Since they have shutouts against Bochum, Mainz, Union Berlin, Benfica, St. Pauli, Augsburg and now also Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday. That run of seven straight wins, no goals conceded is the team's best spell since the start of the 2011/12 season when they kept 10 straight shutouts in all competitions.

Betting angles:

Over 2.5 goals: The last time this fixture ended in a goalless draw was in March 2016, with Dortmund the hosts. Since then, there have been 67 goals in the last 16 meetings, averaging 4.19 goals per game.

Harry Kane to score first:   Kane's hat-trick at home to Augsburg in their last Bundesliga outing saw the England captain become the fastest man ever to 50 goals in the German league. While Dortmund was the scene of Kane's first away hat-trick in the Bundesliga for Bayern, the return Klassiker in Munich in March was one of just nine league matches last season that he failed to find the net in.

Prediction:

Score Prediction: Borussia Dortmund 2 Bayern Munich 4

Not since November 2018 have Bayern been beaten by Dortmund at Signal Iduna Park - taking four wins and one draw since. Expect a free-flowing game full of opportunity and goals with Bayern winning and keeping up their lead at the top of the German league. This will be the 111th Klassiker of the Bundesliga era. Bayern have recorded 54 wins to Dortmund's 26, scoring 223 goals and conceding 135. Some 30 have ended in draws.

Roma vs Atalanta

Date: Monday, December 2, 2024

Kickoff: 21:45 SAST

Venue: Stadio Olimpico, Roma

It has been a year of upheaval already for Roma with four managerial changes in 2024 and still no improvement. Well, maybe a little, but they are winless in their last five games. A 2-2 draw at Tottenham Hotspur, in the Europa League on Thursday however must be seen a positive sign under the veteran boss Claudio Ranieri.

 

Last season’ Europa League victors have wings! They have been flying up the Serie A table and start the weekend one point behind leaders Napoli, who will play before they do, on Sunday afternoon at Torino. Atalanta go into Monday’s game in the Italian capital on a run of seven successive wins.

 

Key Betting Insights:

Mental boost: Coach Ranieri told Roma to ‘attack’ Tottenham constantly and ‘prove to the fans you have not forgotten how to play football,’ so got the response he wanted in Thursday’s thrilling draw at Spurs. It was only Ranieri’s second game on the Giallorossi bench after the 1-0 defeat to Napoli and his presence could help confidence to return to the Roma ranks.

All going swimmingly: There is little that can wipe the smile off of Bergamo faces at present. Atalanta have seven successive Serie A wins with the 21 point haul shooting them up the table after they had begun the league season with only two wins in their opening six games. Tuesday saw Atalanta move up to fifth in the Champions League standings as they thrashed Young Boys Berne 6-1 away.

Betting angles:

Both teams to score: After six goals away in Switzerland on Tuesday, Gian Piero Gasperini’s men are likely to stick to their attacking style of play and given Roma’s attacking potential, there value in betting on both teams to score.

 

Anytime scorer: Home advantage and the platform of being in front of his home fans could see Argentine Pablo Dybala return from injury in positive fashion and grab a goal. He played 45 minutes on Thursday against Spurs.

Prediction:

Score Prediction: Roma 2 Atalanta 2

There is a feeling Roma could be turning a corner and playing at home for the first time under Ranieri, will come out with intent. We all know Atalanta will be firing on full cylinders, so this is one that is going to ebb and flow.

Barcelona vs Las Palmas

Date: Saturday, November 30, 2024

Kickoff: 15:30 SAST

Venue: Estadio Olimpic, Barcelona

Barcelona have only picked up one point from their last two league matches, but they sit top of the La Liga table, four points clear of second-placed Real Madrid, while Las Palmas are 17th, two points outside of the relegation zone. Barca did have a 3-0 home victory in the Champions League in midweek over Stade Brestoise from France.

New Las Palmas coach Diego Martinez has had a positive impact since being appointed at the start of October, winning four of his six games to move the club out of the relegation zone. But they reman just two points above 18th-placed Valencia, who have two games in hand. Positions 18-20 in LaLiga are the relegation places.

Key Betting Insights:

Yamal on the mend: Saturday will see the return of 17-year-old superstar Lamine Yamal following a three-game absence due to an ankle issue. The Spain international has missed just three league matches since the start of the season - with Barcelona failing to win in any of them - as a firm reminder of his key role in the team. Ferran Torres is also back in contention for the hosts.

 

Modest ambitions: Las Palmas finished 16th in LaLiga last term to make it back-to-back campaigns in the Spanish topflight, and they are aiming to secure a third straight season in the top flight for the first time since 2018.

Betting angles:

Over 2.5 goals: Barcelona have only got four goals in their last three games against Las Palmas but two of those matches were away. At home, and looing to consolidate their LaLiga lead, they should have an easy afternoon.

Clean sheet: Las Palmas have played six times previously at Barcelona with a single draw and five defeat and only three goals.

Prediction:

Score Prediction: Barcelona 3 Las Palmas 0

Barcelona are unbeaten in the last eight LaLiga matches between the two sides, with seven victories and a draw. The team from the Canary Islands are looking for their first league win over the Catalans, since September 2015. Barça have outscored Las Palmas during their unbeaten streak, scoring 20 goals and conceding five.