• Competition: Albania - Superliga
• Date: Thursday, 12th, September 2024
• Kickoff: 18:00 UK / 19.00 CEST
• Venue: Elbasan Arena (Elbasani)

Still searching for their first win of the season, KF Laci heads to Elbasan Arena to face AF Elbasani on matchday four of the Albanian Superliga this Thursday.

Although they were part of the third division during the 2020-21 campaign, AF Elbasani made remarkable progress over four years, earning automatic promotion back to the Albanian top flight last term as First Division champions. As newcomers, the main priority for the yellow and blue-clad squad will be to retain their top-flight status, but they will need to show more consistency going forward after experiencing a mixed start, splitting their first three games with one win, one draw, and one loss.

With 16 years of uninterrupted presence in the top division, KF Laci stand out as one of the most stable Albanian top-tier sides, but last season left them with bitter memories, as an eighth-place finish in the regular season forced them into a survival playoff. Fortunately, the Black and Whites ran out comfortable 3-1 winners over Flamurtari in the relegation playoff final to extend their top-flight stay for at least another 12 months. It seems KF Laci haven’t learned from last season’s lesson, as they have started the new league campaign very poorly, and everything points to them once again struggling at the wrong end of the table.

AF Elbasani vs KF Laci Betting Tips: UNDER 2.5

The two sides will face off for the first time in competitive action, but it's worth noting that last year they played a friendly match in which AF Elbanasi celebrated a 2-1 scoreline, and another closely contested battle should be on the cards. Besides showing excellent form in front of their home fans, racking up eight wins on the bounce, the team led by Anxhelo Suta has also shined defensively by keeping a clean sheet in each of their last four fixtures at Elbasan Arena, including a dominant 3-0 victory over Teuta in their first Superliga match at home. 

As mentioned, KF Laci have had an abysmal start to their 16th consecutive top-flight campaign, being stuck at the bottom of the table as the only club without a single win in their opening three matches (D2 L1). While they have struggled in front of goal with just one goal scored, the opposite end of the pitch has looked solid for Armando Cungu’s troops, who have registered two clean sheets so far, and will hope to maintain that level of stability at the back. In a clash between two equally matched teams, we expect a slowed-down pace with considerable caution in defense, which should ultimately lead to a low-scoring affair.