Date: October 1, 2014
Venue: Swedbank Stadion, Malmo Municipality, Sweden
Kick-off time: 19:45 hours BST
Malmo FF will welcome Olympiakos in a Group A encounter in the Champions League. Malmo lost to Juventus in the first game, while Olympiakos caused an upset after beating Atletico Madrid, one of the group favourites.
Malmo FF form: D-L-D-W-W
Malmo played many games in the short period after the Juventus defeat and the squad will be less fresh for the encounter. They have won their last two games in the Allsvenskan and comfortably perched on the top of the table with a buffer of eleven points. Emil Forsberg and Markus Rosenburg’s form means that they have the firepower to blast the Olympiakos defence.
The Greeks will be a tough nut to crack, though the home advantage for Malmo is a positive.
Olympiakos Piraeus form: W-W-W-W-L
Olympiakos have played lesser games than Malmo FF and also, the win against a stronger Atletico Madrid side will give them the self-belief that they can beat anybody in the group. With a much stronger test against Juventus in the next CL gameweek, Olympiakos will look to get maximum point from this fixture to lessen the burden and create a point cushion.
A win against Malmo means that their chances of progressing will increase, though it is early to say so.
Key Players
Malmo FF: Emil Forsberg
The young midfielder scored a hattrick against Mjallby in the Allsvenskan last Saturday. His goal scoring form has been excellent this season and surprising he’s Malmo’s leading goal scorer this season. His all action display has been impressive and will look to further his goal scoring form against the Greek opposition.
Olympiakos Piraeus: Konstantinos Mitroglou
The returning forward, Mitroglou went to Fulham last season but failed to muster any memorable performances. He returned to Greece, where he started and against European opposition manager, Jose Miguel will look to use him. His instinctive goal scoring is a big asset for the Greek side.
Betting Advice
Malmo may not be the favourite to win this game, but at 4.0 with BetVictor they are a tempting option. If you want to play it safe, you can go for bet365’s offer of 1.25 for less than 3.5 goals to be scored in the game.