FC Copenhagen-Hobro

Sunday 10/8 17.00

FC Copenhagen (7th) looked very weak against FC Vestsjælland last weekend (2-2). It appears they were saving energy for the match against Dnipro on Wednesday (won impressively 2-0). FC Copenhagen are surely a very strong team, and although they still need some optimization after adding many new players, they are probably still the strongest team in the league currently. For this match, FC Copenhagen will probably rotate a bit, but the players that could enter are still high quality (for instance Mussis, Pourié and De Ridder). FC Copenhagen will have to do without injured striker Andreas Cornelius. It might not be that bad, since he is the kind of striker that the Hobro are best at containing (tall and physical). Instead FC Copenhagen will probably field the skilled Pourié who is better technically. Hobro (2nd) are a huge sensation. Two wins in three matches are extraordinary for the small club. The win against Brøndby last weekend was remarkable. Hobro dominated by taking a very physical approach that psyched out Brøndby. Away against a physically strong FC Copenhagen team, Hobro will not have the same possibility. Instead they might be dominated like they were against the physical Randers team (lost luckily only 2-1). That been said, Hobro still have some firepower offensively. Antipas and Hvilsom are both playing some brilliant football at the moment, so FC Copenhagen will have to be cautious.

We expect that the quality difference will be evident here. The only risk is that FC Copenhagen are not fully focused on the match after all the Champions League talk that is going on off the pitch. They are typically quite professional so that would surprise us. We expect a clear home victory and possibly the first big defeat for Hobro.

Recommendation: 1 (0-1) – 2.05 at Tipico