Cremonese v Venezia

Cremonese vs Venezia Preview

Six play-off contenders in the Italian second tier have now been whittled down to just two clubs as the 1st leg of the Serie B promotion play-off final between Cremonese and Venezia will be played out at the Stadio Giovanni Zini with Cremonese heading into this 1st leg tie on the back of a convincing 6-3 win on aggregate against Catanzaro, while Venezia registered a 3-1 win over two legs against Palermo in the play-off semi-finals.

Cremonese bring a five-match unbeaten sequence into this vitally important encounter at their Stadio Giovanni Zini which includes wins against Pisa, Cittadella and Catanzaro respectively, while the bigger picture shows the hosts have been handed just four defeats out of their last 21 matches overall in the Italian second tier.

The hosts had previously finished up in fourth place at the end of the regular domestic second tier season and three points behind their upcoming opponents, Venezia, but Giovanni Stroppa's side have produced a solid sequence of results on home soil and they will fancy their chances of producing a positive result here on Thursday night.

10 wins from their last 14 home games suggest Cremonese stand an excellent chance of at least hitting the back of the net here on Thursday night, especially as the hosts have scored in 13 of these last 14 home games.

Wins home and away against Palermo have earned Venezia a place in this season's promotion play-off final where they'll be up against Cremonese and a trip to the Stadio Giovanni Zini in this 1st leg tie.

Recent results have also been encouraging for the visitors as Venezia have been dealt just the two defeats out of their last nine games overall which came in the form of losses at the hands of Catanzaro and Spezia whilst also picking up six wins within this period as well.

Wins registered against the likes of Brescia, Lecco, Cremonese (2-1 at home), FeralpiSalo and Palermo (home and away) will also give Venezia manager Paolo Vanoli's side plenty of confidence as they prepare for this 1st leg tie.

However, Venezia's results away from home have been rather inconsistent as the visitors have managed to capture just five wins from their previous 13 outings on the road which were collected at Sudtirol, Pisa, Palermo (twice) and Lecco but they have also slipped to six defeats along the way as well which throws doubt as to whether they can record a vital win away at Cremonese on Thursday night.

Goals for both sides looks to have a fair chance as six of Venezia's last 10 away games have also produced goals for both teams.

Cremonese v Venezia Verdict

Both Cremonese and Venezia are more than capable of scoring in this 1st leg.

Therefore, our main bet will be BTTS Yes @ 1.75

Other side bets worth considering:

Draw @ 3.40

Correct Score: 1-1 @ 6.50