Thursday’s Football Tips: Kilmarnock and St Mirren face tricky openers in Euro qualifying

SCOTTISH clubs enter Euro qualifying tonight and the bookies reckon both Kilmarnock and St Mirren face a difficult night.

Killie are trying to reach the Europa League groups but the odds are stacked against them and they kick-0ff with a tough tie against Cercle Brugge.

To stand any chance you suspect they will need to win tonight's first leg at Rugby Park but Betfred make them 3/1 outsiders with the Belgians red-hot favourites at 8/11.

That's probably because Kilmarnock slumped to an embarrassing loss to Connah's Quay Nomads the last time they played in Europe five years ago.

But that came after boss Steve Clarke had left to take the Scotland job and there's more stability this time with Derek McInnes gearing up for his third season at the helm.

And while Cercle Brugge will now doubt be technically accomplished they could only finish fifth in the Belgian league last season so they're hardly world beaters.

Kilmarnock v Cercle Brugge Top Betting Tips

While Cercle will probably win this tie across two legs, I think the bookies are underestimating how tough it is to win on the plastic pitch at Kilmarnock.

Celtic lost twice there last time while Rangers were also defeated on the opening day of the Premiership campaign. With a big crowd behind them, McInnes' side will be tough to beat so there could be some value in backing them in the double chance at 19/20.

Killie are a strong team from set-pieces and they will need to take advantage of them to punish Cercle. Over nine corners looks good at evens with Bet365 who also price Kilmarnock +1 at 11/10 in the corner handicap.

Valur v St Mirren Top Tips

St Mirren are back in Europe for the first time since 1987 after last season's fifth-placed Premiership finish secured a crack at the UEFA Conference League.

Fans will be hoping to negotiate a couple of ties at least but the Buddies face a tricky opener against Valur, with the Icelandic season already up and running.

This is the kind of tie that has tripped up undercooked Scottish teams in the past and it could be a tough night for St Mirren in their first competitive outing of the new campaign.

Valur look decent value at 13/8 with Betfred for a win on the night while backing them to win either half also appeals at 4/5.

This should be a close game and the half-time draw stands a chance at 13/10 too,

FC Zurich v Shelbourne Top Tips

Irish side Shelbourne are also in Conference League action tonight but face a daunting tie in Switzerland against FC Zurich.

Betfred make Shels 14/1 outsiders and it's hard to disagree based on Zurich's results in Europe last term. The Swiss side beat Linfield and Hearts en route to the Europa League group stage, where they pushed Arsenal close in narrow defeats.

Zurich also won 2-0 on the road in their Swiss league opener at the weekend so they should be in decent shape for this one. Another win to nil tonight pays just 7/10 but backing the home side to win both halves boosts the odds to 11/8.

Thursday's Football Tips: Super Singles

• Over nine corners at Rugby Park  Evens Bet365
• Valur to win 13/8 Betfred
• Zurich to win both halves 11/8 Betfred

Upcoming Match Previews & Tips: Super Singles

• Thu 3:30 Chelsea v Wrexham
• Thu 19:30 Kilmarnock v Cercle Brugge
• Thu 19:45 Valur v St Mirren
• Football Bet of the Day: Back Goals in the Buddies’ Trip to Reykjavík

Racing Tips

After a few winners on Wednesday, Cairnzy and Rizzel are hoping to pull a few more irons from the Fire.

• Thursday’s Racing Tips – The hattrick looks to be on the cards for Nicky Henderson’s Goblet Of Fire
• Thursday’s Lucky 15 Tips – Thursday’s selections from Sandown, Newbury and Doncaster

As always, post your betting tips for today in the comments section below.

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