AC Oulu v Lahti

Oulu vs Lahti Preview

This upcoming fixture between Oulu and Lahti looks like being an early dress rehearsal for a potential relegation battle for later on in the season as third from bottom hosts Oulu play host to bottom placed club, Lahti, at the Raatin stadion on Wednesday evening, so both teams will be keen to get all three points on the board in this encounter.

Oulu head into this midweek fixture in the Finnish top flight on the back of a resounding 4-1 thrashing away from home at the hands of the Veikkausliiga leaders, KuPS, and indeed, the upcoming hosts have managed to pick up just the single win to date in this season's campaign.

Oulu have also managed to pick up points in draws with the likes of Inter Turku, EIF, Gnistan and Mariehamn along with a welcome victory over HJK Helsinki by way of a 1-0 home win at their Raatin stadion but Rauno Ojanen's side have also been handed a number of defeats already this term.

Losses at the hands of SJK, VPS, Ilves, Haka and KuPS have all been against top six opposition in the table and only one of these five defeats was handed to Oulu in their own backyard where the hosts have lost just three out of their last 14 matches overall in the Veikkausliiga.

Lahti have fared only marginally worse than their upcoming hosts, Oulu, as the visitors sit bottom of the Veikkausliiga table and just one point behind but they too have managed to collect just the single win so far in this season's Finnish top flight campaign.

That rare success came in the form of a 3-0 home win against Mariehamn along with picking up points in draws with Ilves, Haka and EIF but they have also been subjected to a number of losses so far this season as well.

Indeed, Lahti have been dealt six defeats within their opening 10 games of this new term with three of these six defeats being incurred on their travels at the likes of HJK, VPS and Gnistan respectively, along with losing their last three games on the trot overall.

The bigger picture shows Lahti have registered just one win from their previous 13 games overall which includes slipping to eight defeats within this period, while wins overall on the road have been something of a protected species where Lahti have been concerned.

Lahti have recorded just three wins from their last 29 outings on the road while being handed no fewer than 16 defeats in the process as well, so the visitors will have their work cut out if they're to get anything from this upcoming trip to the Raatin stadion.

Oulu v Lahti Verdict

Oulu have lost just once in their last 11 meetings against Lahti and the hosts may just sneak a narrow win here.

Therefore, our main bet will be Oulu win @ 1.70

Other side bets worth considering:

Oulu win & Under 2.5 goals @ 4.33

Correct Score: Oulu 2-0 @ 8.50